Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: True Colours
by Giga Bowser NS
Summary: Sparks the Raichu works at the guild in Radiant City, known as the Rescue Society. The job of its members is to help out wherever help is needed. When one day, Sparks comes across a small, terrified homeless Buizel. His name is Ziggy and he's had a very rough life. Sparks wants to help, but the odds are not in his favour. Ziggy is a shiny Pokémon...or, as others call them, "Freaks"
1. The Muddy Buizel (Part I)

Chapter 1 \- **The Muddy Buizel (Part I)  
**

"Heya, Sparks! The usual?"

The Raichu being addressed lifted his head up to regard the Kecleon behind the sales stall, giving him a smile. "Hey Toby," he greeted, "Yes please."

The Kecleon, Toby, grinned and nodded. "Two Sitrus, one Pinap. Coming up!"

"Take your time."

As Toby disappeared into the area behind his stall, the Raichu leaned on the front and let out a soft sigh. While he waited, he spent his time idly gazing at his surroundings. He was in the centre of the market district, nestled somewhat near the eastern edge of Radiant City. It was a fairly large and busy market, which only made sense as Radiant City was one of the largest cities in the whole world. It was late autumn, and the weather was just starting to get nippy.

Sparks was the Raichu's name, or at least what he went by. He stood tall, slightly above average in size for his species. He had spent quite a number of years walking the planet, but not quite enough for others to start calling him 'old'. The only part of his body that betrayed his slightly higher age was his face, but that was only because it looked 'weathered'. One could look into the eyes of this Pokémon and know that he had seen a lot of things in his life, both good and bad.

He wore a woven satchel over his shoulder. He usually traveled with either a backpack or a fanny pack, but today was different. He was a bit unused to the way the weight of the satchel rested on his shoulder, and he had swapped it from side to side many times during his outing. The ache in his shoulders was only magnified by the fact that he had been out on his paws all day and was just looking forward to getting back home.

"Here you go!" Toby said brightly as he returned, carrying a small paper bag with three noticeable bulges in it.

"Thanks, Toby," Sparks said with a smile, "You're a lifesaver."

"That's my last Pinap. I saved it for you," Toby said with a wink.

"Seriously? Heavens, Toby, you spoil me!"

Toby simply chuckled. "You've been a customer here for a long time, Sparks. It's the least I can do."

"Is that so? How about you start selling me coffee?"

"Coffee?" Toby said with a laugh, "How am I supposed to compete with all the coffee stores out by the Society?"

Sparks playfully whined. "But I'm tired, Tobyyy… I need coffee."

Toby gave him a sympathetic look. "You do look tired. Have you been out on an errand?"

"Ugh… I had to travel out of town just to deliver something for Danika and then bring it right back afterwards."

"Don't they have delivery services for that sort of thing?" Toby asked, raising an eyebrow.

Sparks shook his head. "This is an important thing."

Toby raised his other eyebrow, and then leaned forward slightly as he looked over the edge of his stall and eyed the satchel.

"It's not for sale," Sparks said.

Toby laughed again and leaned back. "Who do you think I am, my brother in Treasure Town?"

Sparks laughed as well. "At least it's pretty light and easy to carry."

"I thought that important things were always heavy, don't ya know?"

Sparks shrugged. "Ah well," he said, as he picked up the bag of berries in his paw, "Seven Poké for the berries, right? I know the price of Pinaps went up."

Toby shrugged and said, "Five is fine."

Sparks' eyes widened a fraction. "What…? No way, Toby. If it costs seven I'm gonna pay you seven."

Toby waved a paw dismissively. "Five is fine," he repeated.

"Seriously, Toby-"

"I _am_ serious, Sparks! Call it a customer appreciation discount if you want. You've been coming to my shop for at least ten years, now. I feel like I know you as well as a brother. Five is _fine_."

A couple moments of silence passed as Sparks simply looked at the Kecleon dubiously. Toby, though, looked determined and dedicated to his kindness. Sparks frowned and said, "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely."

Sparks skewed his lips, and then reached for his satchel so he could fish out his wallet. "How about six, then?"

Toby laughed and said, "If it helps you sleep at night, sure."

"Mm…"

"You're lucky I don't sell anything worth one Poké that I can slip into your bag."

"Har har."

Sparks was having trouble finding his wallet. When he wore his backpack or his fanny pack, he knew where it was and could retrieve it without even looking. This single change to his attire was seriously discombobulating him. He couldn't honestly remember where in the satchel he had put the wallet.

"Give me a moment…" he murmured, loud enough for Toby to hear.

"No rush."

"_Ugh!_ Stupid thing…"

He finally spied the treacherous wallet and reached in to grab it. Before he could, however, his ears perked up when he heard the sound of someone nearby shouting in surprise. He lifted his head to look in the direction that the cry had come from, to see if anybody needed help.

A flash of brown was all he saw. It was within his field of vision for less than a full second. Before even a single muscle in his body could move to react, Sparks suddenly found the world twisting and twirling around him. He let out a yelp of surprise, and then grunted when he ended up falling flat on his back.

He was disoriented for only a brief moment before he realized what had happened. Someone had darted past him, grabbing his satchel along the way, and had roughly yanked it off of him. With the strap having been across his shoulder, the force of this sudden action had essentially spun him like a wound up top. Now he was lying on the ground, feeling dizzy.

He had just been _pickpocketed_.

"Hey!" he shouted as he quickly got to his senses and rose up off the ground, "Hey, stop!"

There was already a cacophony of clamouring Pokémon who had either seen the incident, or had been roughly pushed aside as the assailant made his escape. Sparks already had his eyes locked on the thief. He was no more than a block away, darting through the crowded streets. The stolen satchel was on his back, the strap being held between his teeth. In the heat of the moment, it was impossible to tell what species the thief was. The only thing Sparks could tell for sure was that he was dark brown and that he was about half the Raichu's size.

"Stop!" Sparks shouted, already on his paws and giving chase. He quickly made his way down the market street, moving past the crowds as civilly as he possibly could. The thief already had a fair head-start on him, and was not being slowed down by the crowd very much.

Sparks growled to himself, having trouble believing that this had just happened to him. To pickpocket him, of all Pokémon, in broad daylight was almost unheard of thanks to the badge on his chest. More than that, though, Sparks was berating himself for letting it happen in the first place. If he lost his money or his tools, that wouldn't really be a big deal.

It was the _other_ object inside of the satchel that really made him panic.

The thief darted around a corner, and Sparks pushed himself to run faster. The marketplace whizzed by him in a blur, full of confused and frightened faces. It was a fairly busy day at the market, but for the most part Sparks was able to duck and weave through the crowd. A few Pokémon got pushed aside by his fairly large frame, but it couldn't be helped.

Sparks zipped around the same corner without stopping, and soon had eyes on the thief again. This was a smaller street in the market, and it was less crowded. As such, Sparks was able to get down on all fours and run even faster. His eyes never left his target. He _needed_ to get that bag back. If he lost it, it would be a catastrophe.

The swift Raichu was able to halve the distance between himself and the thief, thanks to the more open street. As the thief approached another junction, he cast a quick look over his shoulder at his pursuer. The Pokémon's eyes shot open wide in shock when he saw how close Sparks was behind him, and a look of fear appeared.

"Stop right now! Drop the bag!" Sparks yelled in a commanding voice, "RSGA! Stop immediately!" His words had no effect, though, as the thief quickly darted around another corner. Surprise briefly clouded Sparks' expression. That _usually_ had at least some sort of effect on fugitives and outlaws.

Regardless, Sparks darted around the next corner quickly by jumping and rebounding off the wall of the adjoining building, allowing him to maintain his speed. The thief glanced back over his shoulder once more, his look of panic growing. Now that he was closer, Sparks could see that the Pokémon was a short, furry quadruped with a tail. Strangely, though, Sparks still couldn't figure out what species he was. It sort of looked like a giant, short-haired Eevee without any white fur.

They had left the market district now, the chase continuing out onto the streets of Radiant City. The pickpocket was doing everything he could to shake his pursuer. Sparks had to applaud his swiftness, but the Raichu never lost any ground. As the chase wore on, the distance between them lessened. At one point the thief had slipped into a narrow alley, but Sparks had simply continued along the street to where the other end of the alley was in an attempt to intercept him. He had just barely missed, though there was a look of shock on the thief's face when he realized he hadn't actually lost the Raichu.

Sparks could hear the thief's panicked panting as he ran. He seemed to have stamina because he wasn't slowing down, but Sparks wasn't slowing down either. "I'm going to catch you! You won't get away!" Sparks called out to him, "So just drop the bag!"

As expected, the thief didn't respond. Instead, he made a sharp turn so suddenly that he nearly skidded along the ground and lost his balance. The brown Pokémon darted down a small side street, and Sparks followed a few seconds later. Unfortunately, as he rounded the corner, Sparks nearly collided with a confused looking Frogadier and her daughter. He was forced to slam on the brakes and quickly sidestep the two bystanders, managing to slip past them without causing injury. This, however, had allowed the thief to pull ahead.

Sparks growled as he continued running, looking at what lay ahead. He realized that they were near the edge of the city now. This particular street went straight towards the perimeter road, and beyond that was the open fields that lay to the west of the city. The chase could continue in one of two ways, depending on which way the thief chose to go at the next intersection, and Sparks prepared for both possibilities.

The thief chose to go straight, leaving the roads behind and darting into the grassy fields.

Sparks adopted a determined look. Perfect.

There was a hill directly ahead that sloped downwards away from the road, and the thief was currently running down it. Sparks, meanwhile, adjusted his course and ran a little bit to the left. Once he dashed across the road, he found himself at the top of the small grassy hill, looking down on the thief at the bottom who was still running.

Without breaking stride, Sparks ran straight for the hill. His small course adjustment meant that he was now facing the slope directly. Once he reached the hill, after some quick last-minute course calculation, Sparks took a big leap forward as if he were pouncing. While in the air, he curled his whole body up, tail and all, into a perfect Defense Curl. When he landed on the ground a second later, he started to roll down the hill.

Sparks picked up speed. A _lot_ of speed in a short amount of time. He couldn't see where he was going, but it didn't matter. What mattered was the speed.

Once a number of seconds had passed and his speed had nearly tripled, Sparks carefully timed himself and un-curled. He kicked off of the ground with his hind legs and took a long bound forwards, to keep his momentum, and set sights on his target.

As he had expected, the thief was directly in front of him. When Sparks' paws hit the ground, all he had to do was leap forward one last time. He had executed this manoeuvre many times in the past, and it hadn't failed yet.

The thief had heard his approach and was looking back over his shoulder. A look of sheer terror clouded his expression before he screamed.

_Fwump!_

Sparks tackled directly into the assailant, sending them both tumbling wildly along the grass. The world was a dizzying mess for a moment, filled with flailing limbs and confused grunting, but the mayhem eventually ended with Sparks on top of the other Pokémon, pinning him down roughly by his shoulders.

The dust settled, and for a moment there was finally quiet, save for the crackling of electricity from Sparks' cheeks.

Sparks, who was sitting on the other Pokémon's midsection and holding him down, took a moment to catch his breath. He had prepared a Thunder Wave to use, but was holding off unless he absolutely needed to use it. Sparks used this time to finally get a good look at this thief. Confusion grew in his expression for a moment when he still found he couldn't identify the species, even this close up. No Pokémon he had ever seen before had brown fur and looked anything like this.

It took him a moment to realize what exactly he was looking at. The Pokémon was a Buizel, but he was _covered_ from head to tail in mud and dirt. Pretty much every single strand of fur, in addition to his nose and the floatation ring around his neck, were painted a solid brown, earthy colour. Literally the only thing on him not covered in mud were his eyes.

And good heavens, were his eyes _wide_! The Buizel's pupils had shrunk to the size of dots and were staring unblinking up at the larger Raichu that sat on top of him.

Sparks let out the breath he had been holding, allowing his built-up electricity to dissipate. "What the _hell_ do you think you're doing?!" he exclaimed as he caught his breath.

The Buizel cringed, but didn't respond. He was breathing pretty heavily, and Sparks figured it was only partially because of how hard he'd been running. Sparks had about a thousand questions in his head, most of them relating to why this Pokémon was covered in mud, but he had more important things to worry about.

While continuing to keep the Buizel pinned down, Sparks looked over his shoulder. The satchel was lying on the ground a short distance away. Thankfully, it was close enough that he could reach out with his tail and grab it while still remaining on top of the Buizel.

He held the satchel up with his tail, and then used one of his paws to open it. The other paw remained on the Buizel's shoulder. He lifted the flap up just enough so that he could peer in without letting his unwitting companion see inside. A dim blue glow greeted his eyes and he let out a sigh of relief. It was undamaged.

Setting the bag down, Sparks then returned his attention to the Buizel. The Raichu's heart was only just then finally slowing down. "You seriously thought it would be a good idea to pickpocket somebody like me?" His expression turned cross. "Are you an idiot? Do you know who I am?" he said, indicating his badge. When the Buizel didn't answer, he leaned in close and half-shouted, "Well?"

The Buizel yelped and cringed, turning his head and cowering. He kept his eyes shut tight for a moment, and only opened them once no harm had befallen him.

Sparks sighed and rolled his eyes. He then sat up and tapped his badge with one of his paws. It started to glow. "Thief apprehended, western city limits."

He looked down at the Buizel again, who hadn't moved a muscle even though Sparks had stopped holding his shoulders down. Sparks had apprehended a lot of criminals and outlaws in his life, and there were quite a few ways they tended to react. Usually they tried to fight tooth and nail to escape his grasp, even if he paralyzed them, while some simply resigned themselves to their fate and others actually became remorseful and apologetic.

None of that applied to this Buizel, though. The smaller Pokémon beneath him looked utterly terrified. His eyes were wide open, his pupils the size of pinpricks, and his chest continued to rise and fall rapidly as he bordered on the edge of hyperventilating. Sparks could feel him quivering like a leaf.

Looking a little closer, Sparks saw that tears were forming in the corners of his eyes. This Buizel looked frightened beyond belief and scared for his life.

Sparks' expression softened a little. "Hey," he said in a calmer voice, "Relax. I'm not gonna hurt you."

The Buizel didn't respond. Nothing about his expression changed.

"I'm a member of the Rescue Society, all right? I'm not a vigilante or something."

Tears started to streak down the Buizel's muddy cheeks, again leading Sparks to wonder what the mud was all about.

The Raichu's expression turned sour for a moment. "Look, this is your own fault. If you didn't want to get tackled and held down, then you shouldn't have stolen my satchel. You're a _thief_, so this is what you get."

The tears didn't stop. Sparks was pretty sure they doubled.

"…Stop that!"

The Buizel whined and cringed again, bringing up his paws to shield his face. He sat there for a moment, shivering like crazy. He was actually starting to hyperventilate now.

"Hey, c'mon," Sparks said, his expression softening once again, "Stop it. You're gonna pass out if you keep doing that."

The Buizel lowered his paws and his breathing slowed somewhat, but he was still affixing the Raichu with that terrified look.

Sparks crossed his forelimbs and gave the Buizel a frown. "You had to have expected something like this, right? Or did you just think you would never get caught?"

A tiny whimper crawled up the Buizel's throat, and tears started to run down his cheeks again.

Sparks sighed softly, deflating a little. All of his anger and stress was simmering away. He just couldn't stay mad at somebody who looked this afraid. This poor Buizel looked like his entire world was about to come to an end. He again found himself looking at the coat of mud the Buizel was wearing, which only added to the smaller Pokémon's pitiful appearance.

The Raichu's badge started to glow, and a female's voice emitted from it. "Heavy interference, message not received. Please repeat, Sparks."

The Buizel was now looking at the badge with wide eyes, as if it had just started sprouting dark magic. Sparks bit his lip, looking down at the Buizel for a few moments, and then lifted his paw to tap the badge. "No action required," he said, "False alarm."

"Understood, Sparks."

Sparks then leaned forward a little and directed all of his attention on the petrified Buizel still lying beneath him. "So," he said, using a much calmer and gentler voice, "What were you planning to do with my satchel? Let me guess…You were going to sell whatever was inside and then buy some food?"

The Buizel didn't answer. He was still frozen in place, staring up at the Raichu above him.

"C'mon, buddy. Say something. Answering me is not going to get you into any more trouble, I promise. Is that what you wanted to do?"

The smaller Pokémon stared up at him silently for a moment, still breathing heavily. Then finally, he gulped nervously and subtly nodded his head. It was such a minute movement that Sparks almost missed it.

"So you weren't trying to make a quick buck, you were trying to feed yourself. Yeah?"

There was another pause, and then the Buizel answered in the same way.

Sparks sighed again, and glanced up towards the city for a couple of seconds. When he looked back at the Buizel, he said, "Look…If I let you sit up, are you going to run away?"

The Buizel gave him a curious, and still terrified, look.

"I want to have a discussion with you," Sparks clarified, "and this position is kind of awkward. I know you probably want to get as far away from me as possible right now, but if I ask you nicely, will you sit still and be good?"

The Buizel gulped nervously again. His eyes darted skittishly from side to side for a moment, and he seemed to consider the request. Then, he looked back up at Sparks and nodded demurely.

Half-smiling, Sparks nodded. "Good."

Sparks then got up off of the Buizel and sat down on the grass nearby. The Buizel remained frozen in place for a moment, still quivering a little bit, and then slowly brought himself up into a sitting position. True to his word, he didn't get up and try to run away. Instead, he simply sat peacefully across from Sparks.

The Raichu took a moment to get a better look at the Buizel as a whole. He re-confirmed the fact that every square inch of this Pokémon, except his eyes, was covered in mud. There wasn't a trace of orange, cream, blue or yellow to be seen. Sparks could also see that the Buizel appeared thin and somewhat frail, despite how long he had managed to evade the Raichu during their chase. He sat with a slouched, withdrawn posture, as if trying to make himself look as small as possible. His fur, even in spite of the mud, was a total mess. He still looked really afraid, but there was now a hint of intrigue in his expression. It was overshadowed, though, by the heavy frown that he wore. In a single word, the Buizel looked miserable.

"Let me ask you something…" Sparks said, "Did you _want_ to steal from me?"

The Buizel furrowed his brow and tilted his head.

"Think about it. If you had complete control over everything, would you have wanted to steal from me?"

He thought it over for a brief moment, and then shamefully shook his head.

"Well, okay. That is reassuring to hear. It doesn't change the fact that what you did was wrong and highly illegal, but…" Sparks trailed off.

Fear and anxiety grew in the Buizel's expression.

Sparks hummed and said, "You look like you've seen better days…I don't think I've ever seen a Pokémon get so filthy…"

The Buizel briefly glanced down at his mud-covered body and then shrunk back bashfully.

"Let me guess," Sparks continued, "You live on the streets? You're homeless?"

A brief pause, and then the Buizel nodded demurely.

Now it was Sparks' turn to frown. "You probably sleep in those dirty alleyways, huh?"

Another tiny nod.

Sparks sighed heavily and glanced away, a heavy feeling in his heart. This whole incident was quickly turning from deplorable to tragic. To be robbed by a thief was one thing, but to be robbed by a starving homeless Pokémon who wanted nothing more than a bite to eat?

His ears perked up as an idea came to him, but then fell right back down as he realized that he had lost the bag of berries he'd purchased somewhere in the confusion. They were probably lying on the ground below Toby's stall, spilled and ruined.

Sparks looked over at the Buizel again and felt his heart ache. He had been working for the Society for a long while now and had seen no end of Pokémon suffering, but it still didn't make it any easier to see. The Buizel was still affixing him with a wide-eyed, terrified expression. Sparks figured the only reason he was sitting still was out of fear for what would happen if he moved a muscle.

"Do you need help?"

The Buizel furrowed his brow again in response to the question.

Sparks sat up a little straighter. "I can tell just by looking at you that, well…you need help," he said, "It's obvious that you're…in a really bad place."

Still the mud-covered Pokémon didn't react, and Sparks only just came to the realization that he hadn't heard the Buizel utter a single word yet.

"I'm not going to call the police," Sparks said, speaking gently, "Now that I know the _reason_ you tried to rob me, well… I want to help you, instead."

The Buizel then adopted a strange expression. It looked somewhat dubious, as if he was asking 'Why would you help me after what I did?'

Sparks tried giving him a reassuring smile. "Come on, at least give it a try. You've got nothing to lose." He held his paw out, intending to give the Buizel a pawshake. Instead, the other Pokémon immediately cringed and grimaced, as if the paw was a deadly weapon that was going to kill him on the spot.

Sparks frowned even more and slowly withdrew his paw. This Buizel was about as far as possible from what he had expected to find in the Pokémon that had tried to rob him. He wouldn't have believed the Buizel was capable of it if he hadn't seen it with his own eyes.

"Why don't we start over?" Sparks asked in a slow, deliberate tone that he had used plenty of times before in the past. He offered an amicable smile and said, "Hello. You can call me Sparks. It's nice to meet you."

The Buizel still looked up at him like a frightened cub.

"What's your name?" Sparks asked. When he still got no response, he leaned in just a touch closer. "Come now. You have to have a name, right? I need _something_ to call you…"

Sparks' rather quiet companion bit his lip and glanced away for a moment. He appeared troubled, or perhaps indecisive. When he glanced back up at Sparks and saw that the Raichu was still looking at him intently, he deflated a little. He gulped nervously, hesitated, and then finally opened his mouth.

Unfortunately, what came out would be better labelled as a squeak than a response.

"What was that?" Sparks asked.

The Buizel cowered slightly under Sparks' insistence, but then he gulped again and let out a breath of air. "Z…Ziggy…" he muttered, almost imperceptibly quiet.

"Ziggy?"

The Buizel nodded. "P-Pokémon call me…Ziggy…"

Sparks smiled and said, "Okay, good! Well, it's nice to meet you Ziggy."

Ziggy simply nodded silently.

"All right, then. Now listen, Ziggy," Sparks said, still using a calm voice, "I want you to come with me. I want to take you to a place where you can get help. We can give you food. We can give you shelter. Most importantly, though, we can give you whatever you need to get up on your paws and stop living on the street."

Although Ziggy perked up at the mention of food, it was quickly overshadowed by an expression of fearful distrust. He didn't really respond one way or another.

Sparks' heart was starting to ache again. More and more, this Buizel was looking like a lost cub who had been separated from his mother. Sparks' sense of altruism was really shining through in this moment. He no longer cared about the fact that this Pokémon had robbed him just a few minutes before. All he saw now was a Pokémon in _dire_ need of help.

"I promise, Ziggy," he said, leaning in a little more and looking the Buizel right in the eyes, "I promise that we will help you." He offered a benevolent smile and added, "It's what we do."

Ziggy bit his lip again and glanced away.

"At the _very_ least, even if you don't stick around, we can give you a good meal. What do you say?"

When Ziggy looked up at him this time, Sparks could see a mix of pessimism and hope in his eyes. He could tell that Ziggy was thinking this was too good to be true, and that there had to be some sort of catch.

Sparks decided to try the pawshake again. Ziggy still flinched when his paw was extended, but not as badly this time. He stared at the paw for almost a full minute, as if looking for hidden weapons of mass destruction. Then, ever so slowly, he reached out one of his own mud-covered paws.

The two paws connected and an awkward pawshake was exchanged. Sparks could still feel the Buizel quivering a little bit.

"What do you say?" Sparks repeated, "Maybe we can get things figured out a little bit better?"

Ziggy bit his lip, looking unsure.

"Want to come?"

A visible shudder wracked Ziggy's body for a moment, and then he looked up at Sparks. Though he still looked afraid, confused and unsure, he did silently nod.

Sparks smiled gently and said, "Good. I'm glad to hear that." He then stood up on his paws, indicating for Ziggy to do the same. The Buizel was still flinching slightly at every move that he made, but he wasn't running off either. Sparks reached down and picked up the satchel, which he slung over his shoulder once again.

Ziggy was gazing up at him, looking unsure of what to do. Now that they were both standing, Sparks could see that Ziggy was just over half as tall as he was.

"Just follow me," Sparks said, giving the Buizel an encouraging smile. He started walking off across the fields, heading towards the north. After a couple of steps, he glanced over his shoulder to find, as he had expected, Ziggy rooted to the spot with nervousness. Sparks flashed him another friendly smile and said, "C'mon."

Ziggy's gaze darted around for a moment and he seemed to consider his options. Eventually, though, he managed to take a few unsure steps forward. When Sparks set off again, Ziggy followed a few paces behind.

Sparks made his way back up the grassy hills towards the perimeter road, which he planned to follow until it got him to his destination. The Society was located on the outskirts of town too, but it was at the north and they were in the west. He made sure to carry the satchel on the front of his body, just in case. It wasn't so much that he didn't trust Ziggy, but rather it was because of how important the satchel's contents were.

"I must say," Sparks spoke up, trying to break the silence, "You run a lot faster than I would have expected."

When he didn't get a response, Sparks glanced over his shoulder. He paused when he saw that Ziggy had fallen behind and was now standing on the grass, hesitating. He was still quite a few paces away from the road that Sparks had stepped onto.

"What's the matter?" Sparks asked him, "Come on, it's not too far away."

Ziggy gulped and glanced around nervously. There was nobody else around, but Ziggy still seemed a bit paranoid about something. Eventually, he overcame whatever was making him pause and he jogged over to where Sparks was standing, after which the two continued walking. To Sparks' surprise, Ziggy was actually walking _closer_ to him now than he was before.

"I'm taking you to the Society Headquarters," Sparks explained, reasoning that transparency was important right now, "They have a lot of resources there to help you out, and it's absolutely free of charge. If nothing else, it's a place where you can be safe, and I promise you'll be welcomed there. As long as you don't break our trust, you'll have nothing to worry about."

Ziggy made a soft noise, like a whine or a grunt, in response. He was only about a single pace behind Sparks as he followed, but he kept looking around nervously at his surroundings. Sparks didn't get it at first, but he soon realized that Ziggy probably spent a lot of his time hiding from the public's eye if he was a thief. If was possible he could run into somebody he had robbed before.

Sparks frowned as he thought about this. Despite knowing Ziggy for a grand total of perhaps five minutes, it still felt somehow wrong to label him as a 'thief'.

They continued walking for a couple of blocks, the large city passing by on their right. This was a fairly quiet part of the city, so the most they encountered were a few locals doing something a block away from where they were. Nobody was walking the perimeter road at this time of day.

Ziggy, however, still looked really skittish. The way he constantly glanced around nervously suggested that he thought someone was following them. He definitely looked paranoid. Whenever somebody else was within sight, whether this other Pokémon saw them or not, Ziggy's agitation grew and he tried to hide himself behind the larger Raichu if he could.

They were approaching the coast now. Radiant City was situated just south of the ocean, and its northern edge bordered the coastline. The actual ocean was still about the length of three city blocks away from the boundary of the city, except in one spot. Located almost exactly where north-west would be on a compass was a small inlet that snaked its way inland and came within a half a kilometre of the city limits.

This inlet was what they were approaching now. The rest of the coast was formed by short but steep cliffs, but the inlet cut between them to form a small beach. There was a small trail leading off of the perimeter road down to this beach, and that was where Sparks started walking down.

Glancing back, Sparks saw that Ziggy looked a little confused. There were no buildings or anything Pokémon-made at this beach, so his confusion made sense. The fact was that this wasn't their destination, but it was a detour that Sparks wanted to make first.

The trail ended and both Pokémon took a few steps onto the sand. The temperature was a little lower this close to the ocean, but it wasn't bad. There was still about 25 metres of sand before the water.

Sparks turned to regard Ziggy, who looked even more confused. "We gotta do something here before we go to the Society," he said. When Ziggy tilted his head in confusion, Sparks elaborated. "I can't let you walk into the Society like that, my friend. Well, I _could_ I suppose, but…The other residents would probably appreciate it if I didn't let you track mud all over the place, y'know?"

Ziggy's eyes shot open wide.

"Just a quick wash will be enough," Sparks said, "Don't need to be too thorough. Just get that mud off of your fur, and then we can go."

There were quite a few different possible reactions Sparks had expected to follow this request. Shock and horror was not one of them.

Ziggy's eyes were as wide as dinner plates, and his mouth hung open slightly as he regarded Sparks. His eyes darted to the water a couple of times and every time he did, his chest started to move a little faster.

Sparks started to frown as a look of panic began to engulf the poor Buizel. "What? What's the matter?" he asked, starting to feel perplexed himself.

Ziggy, now breathing rapidly, locked eyes with Sparks and slowly shook his head.

"I don't understand. What's wrong?" Sparks asked, "It's just a quick dip in the water to get that mud off of you."

For some inexplicable reason, this only increased the level of agitation in the little Buizel. Sparks was baffled by this. Was Ziggy afraid of the water? How could that be possible for a Water-Type?

Ziggy was shaking his head even harder now, looking more and more resolute in his refusal to get into the water. He looked really nervous, like something was going to jump out of the water and grab him.

"What's the problem?" Sparks said, his confusion giving way to a touch of irritation, "Are you scared? I'm not asking you to go for a swim or anything, I just want you to clean yourself off a little! For heaven's sake, I'll _help_ you if you need me to, but it's just a quick bath!"

It seemed like Ziggy was having none of that, though. The Buizel remained rooted to the spot, still shaking his head.

Sparks stepped forward, reaching out his paw to grab Ziggy by his arm. "Ziggy, come on, please?" he said, giving the Buizel's limb a gentle tug.

Ziggy nearly flipped out, immediately fidgeting and struggling to free his limb. Sparks let go, not wanting to be physically forceful, and Ziggy took a couple panicked steps back.

"I…" Sparks murmured, quite confused by this turn of events, "I really don't understand the hesitation here. Would you be more comfortable in a conventional bathtub? Or maybe just a wet sponge and some soap?"

Ziggy didn't look any less worried by this. He was still staring at Sparks with wide eyes, looking as if he was afraid Sparks was going to hurt him. After a moment, he shook his head again.

Sparks sighed and deflated a little. "I'm sorry, buddy…" he said, "I don't understand. I would've thought you might enjoy getting that mud off of you…" He glanced over his shoulder and held a paw out towards the ocean. "The water is calm and safe here. You're not gonna drown or anything. It's perfectly safe. It's actually quite a ni-"

The rest of his words died on his lips, though. When he turned back to face Ziggy again, Ziggy was gone. The minute Sparks had turned away, the Buizel had bolted. He was now darting back up the street in the general direction of the city, and had already nearly reached the perimeter road.

"…Ah," he murmured. Sparks could probably catch up to him easily enough, but he instead stayed put where he was. What would be the point? This Pokémon clearly did not want anything to do with him or the help he was trying to provide, and even if he did he was too scared to accept the aid that was being offered.

Sparks' heart sank as he watched the retreating form of the Buizel disappear into a small alleyway that led into the city. In a way, he felt like he had failed. He had been trying to help a struggling, suffering homeless Pokémon get off of the streets, but now said Pokémon was back on the streets again. It was easy to imagine the misery that Ziggy was probably going through, and thoughts like those lingered painfully in Sparks' mind. It hurt him to know that the same misery was just going to attack him again.

What could be done, though? Some Pokémon just didn't want to be helped.

Sparks sighed as he glanced down, catching sight of the satchel that was resting against his side. The truth was that he had more important things to worry about right now. He needed to get back to the Society before somebody else tried to pickpocket him.

With one more sigh of defeat, Sparks started to walk back up the road as well.


	2. The Muddy Buizel (Part II)

Chapter 2 \- **The Muddy Buizel (Part II)**

"Sparks! Good heavens, it's been at least a week!"

Sparks grinned somewhat wearily at the Kecleon as he approached. "Yeah, it's been a bit. Danika and I have been…Well, let's just say we've been working. Hard."

Toby raised his eyebrows. "Sounds important."

"Mhm… She finally ran out of work to give me and I'm now allowed to walk the outside world once again."

Sparks marched right up to the Kecleon's stall. He reached down into his fanny pack and pulled out a small pile of coins, which he then promptly deposited on the counter.

Toby eyed the coins with confusion. "What's this for?"

Sparks smiled apologetically and said, "I realized like a day after I saw you…that I never paid you for that bag of berries. I was distracted by the fact that I was being robbed."

The Kecleon glanced up as a look of realization appeared on his face. "Oh wow, I didn't even realize that."

"Yup," Sparks said, "It's been bugging me ever since. I would've come down sooner if Danika had loosened my chains."

Toby frowned and said, "But Sparks, you dropped those berries when you ran off. I remember I cleaned them up. You don't need to pay for those, my friend. You didn't get to eat them."

"Oh don't be ridiculous. That's merchandise that you couldn't sell afterwards, so _some_body should pay for it. Just take it, Toby."

"Sparks…"

"Hey, you know full well how hard it is to stop an RSGA from helping somebody."

Indecision briefly wracked the Kecleon, but eventually he shrugged and reached for the coins. "Well…Thanks, Sparks. Thanks for being perseverant. I had honestly forgotten."

"Hey, now I can sleep at night," Sparks replied jokingly.

Toby gathered the coins and stored them somewhere behind the stall, and then returned his attention to the visiting Raichu. "So, what happened?" he asked, "Did you catch that thief?"

"I did, yeah. I chased him all the way out of town, past the perimeter road, until I finally caught him. He was some homeless hoodlum covered in mud but he was _fast_!"

"No kidding," Toby replied, looking impressed, "You're pretty damn fast already. It took you until you left the city to catch him? He must be fast!"

"Danika would have _killed_ me if I'd lost that bag…"

"Well, the good thing is that you caught 'im. Did you turn him over to the police, or what?"

Sparks then shared the story of what had happened after he had caught up with Ziggy. Toby was equally as perplexed as he had been when Sparks described the Buizel's hesitation to wash off the mud.

Then, Sparks sighed softly. "Ah well, that's in the past now. Maybe I'll see him again, but who can say? It's a big city. There's always Pokémon who need help, so it's time to focus on something else."

Toby gave him an understanding grin. "Absolutely. I'm sure he'll be fine, one way or another."

"I dunno…I hope so, though…"

"Do you want your usual today?" Toby asked.

Sparks shook his head. "I already ate, I'm afraid."

"Ah, I see. No worries. What are you up to today, then?"

"Well, aside from paying what I owed you, not a whole lot. I've been working with Danika for so long that Carmen gave me a day off."

"That makes sense," Toby replied with a nod, "So, when're you gonna be able to tell me all about this super-secret project with Danika?"

Sparks shrugged. "Not a clue, but probably not for a long, long while…"

The two continued their friendly conversation for a couple more minutes. Sparks was just enjoying a chance to relax and be out of the Society Headquarters at the same time. His schedule had been so hectic lately, and the incident with Ziggy had only added to that. Truth be told, it had been a little difficult for Sparks to focus on his work with Danika. His mind kept lingering on the poor Buizel he had met.

Eventually, a customer approached the stall and they had to end their conversation. "I'll drop by tomorrow," Sparks said.

"Okay, I'll see you then. Don't work yourself too hard!"

The two waved goodbye, and then Sparks turned and walked off down the market street. It was just as busy today as it was pretty much any day. Tons of Pokémon running shops, stores and stalls, and even more Pokémon wanting to do business with them. It was a constant cacophony of noise, and it was impossible to move at any pace higher than a slow walk. To some it might be overwhelming, but Sparks had lived in this city since he'd been a Pichu. This was 'normal' to him.

After a short time walking, Sparks' ears perked up as he heard a commotion that was loud enough to rise above the drone of sound in the market. Someone was yelling something, and they were being _quite_ loud about it. Loud and angry.

The noise was coming from a smaller street, so Sparks rounded the corner as he was curious as to what was going on. He didn't have to look very long, for he soon noticed the crowd of onlookers that had gathered around one of the stores. Towering above them was a _very_ angry Machamp.

"You little sneak!" he was shouting, "I oughta rip you in half you filthy crook! You have just pissed off the wrong Pokémon, punk! You'll be lucky if you walk away from here still breathin'!"

Sparks was on the move immediately, making a direct course for the shop. This looked like a situation that had already gotten way out of hand, and he needed to intervene before somebody got hurt. Especially since the Machamp was holding a Pokémon upside-down in midair by their tail.

Said Pokémon was a very familiar-looking Buizel.

The Machamp continued shouting. "You think you can steal from me and get away with it?! I've seen you skulking around here before! I _know_ this ain't the first time you've stolen from me! I'm gonna rip off one of those tails right offa ya!"

Sparks assertively pushed his way to the front of the crowd and marched right up to the furious Machamp. "Ziggy!" he exclaimed, "What's going on?"

Before Sparks had spoken up, the Buizel looked like his heart had stopped as he stared in utter terror at the Machamp. The colour had probably drained from his face entirely, though the mud he still wore covered that up. When he heard Sparks call his name, it was like someone had whacked him in the head. He turned around in confusion, looking shocked that someone had actually said his name.

The two locked eyes, and Sparks saw Ziggy gasp.

Sparks' attention was then forcibly drawn to the Machamp, who stomped towards him and leaned forward to look down at him in an intimidating manner. "You know this punk?" he asked in a dark, even tone.

"Yeah," Sparks replied in a concerned tone, "He's my cousin. We came here today to do some shopping. What happened?"

Sparks briefly glanced up at Ziggy, who was still being held upside-down by his tail. He had a baffled look on his face, and Sparks could only hope that he would play along.

"Well," the Machamp spat, "Your cousin just stole a whole loaf'a bread from me!"

"What…?!" Sparks gave the Buizel a shocked look, "You _stole_ something Ziggy? What would possess you to do that?"

The Buizel looked scared, ashamed and confused all at the same time.

"_And_!" the Machamp said, leaning forward more, "This ain't the first time either! I see him all the time scurryin' away with my merchandise! Now I finally caught 'im and he's gonna pay!" As he shouted this, a flash of terror appeared across Ziggy's face.

"Okay, hold on a second…" Sparks said in his best 'defusing' voice, "I know something's happened here, but can we talk about this like civilized Pokémon?"

"'Civilized' nothin'!" the Machamp boomed, "This punk's gonna get what he deserves, one way or another!"

Sparks' expression turned serious and he gave the Machamp an assertive look. "I would be a lot more comfortable," he said in a slow, deliberate tone, "if you would kindly put my cousin down." He crossed his forelimbs and stuck out his chest a tiny bit, subtly bringing attention to the badge clipped to his fur.

The Machamp did take notice of the badge. There was a moment of tense silence, and then the Machamp growled and lowered the Buizel down to the ground. He let go of his tail, causing Ziggy to slump somewhat roughly onto his back. Ziggy stared up at the Machamp in fear for a moment, and then turned his head to look up at Sparks. After a couple of seconds, Ziggy quickly scrambled to his paws and darted behind Sparks' back.

"Thank you," Sparks said, looking back up at the Machamp.

"This don't change the fact that your cousin's been stealin' from me for weeks!" he shouted.

"Are you certain of this?" Sparks replied with a frown.

The Machamp worked his jaw and glared down at Sparks. "Unless there's twenty different Buizel runnin' around covered in mud, it was your weird cousin every time."

Sparks sighed and turned around to look at Ziggy, who was cowering behind him and using him as a shield. "Ziggy, is this true? Why would you do something like that? This is so unlike you! I know you're better than that." When Ziggy timidly glanced up at him, Sparks gave him a quick wink before turning back to the Machamp.

"Listen, Mister…?"

"Vincenzio" the Machamp growled.

"Mister Vincenzio… I'm really sorry that this happened. I'm honestly in shock that my little cousin would do something like this. Please accept my apology for this, frankly, embarrassing incident."

Vincenzio crossed two of his arms and continued to glare down at Sparks. "I don't know what kind of funky friendship hippie B.S. you do up there, but here in the _real_ world where we have _police_ and _laws_, your cousin is in a huge world of trouble. If you're gonna stand in my way, then I'm gonna personally drag the _both_ of you straight down to the police station! Or did you miss the part where I said he was stealing from me for _weeks_?!"

Sparks frowned and glanced back once more at Ziggy, who still looked just as petrified. He then sighed heavily and said, "How much did he take?"

"What?" Vincenzio said, arching an eyebrow.

"The things he stole. How much is it worth?" Sparks elaborated as he reached into his fanny pack to retrieve his wallet.

Vincenzio gave him a skeptical look, but his eyebrows shot up when he saw Sparks' wallet. For a moment he looked like he was doing some complex equations in his head, though Sparks secretly guessed that they weren't all that complex at all.

"300 Poké," Vincenzio answered.

Sparks was struck silent for a moment. He even heard a few Pokémon in the crowd quietly gasp. "…300 Poké…?" he replied in disbelief.

Vincenzio nodded. "He stole a 20 Poké loaf of bread today, and I've seen this mutt sneakin' around here at least five times. So, takin' into account the fact that I probably _missed_ seein' him just as many times, I'm askin' for 10 loaves of bread worth. _Plus_ an extra hundred in damages so I don't sue that little punk and have 'im thrown in jail!"

The crowd started murmuring. Sparks stared evenly at the Machamp for about half a minute. Vincenzio stared right back at him, unflinchingly.

Finally, Sparks sighed in frustration and said, "All right." He reached into his wallet and fished out quite a few banknotes, which he quickly counted up and then handed over to the Machamp. Vincenzio looked surprised for a brief moment, but then snatched the cash away and quickly counted it himself.

While he was doing that, Sparks quickly checked over his shoulder to make sure Ziggy was still there. A bigger look of disbelief Sparks had never seen before in his life. Ziggy's jaw was practically on the floor.

"Well…All right, then," the Machamp said, drawing Sparks' attention once more.

"Okay? Is everything okay here now?"

"Yeah, I'll let 'im go," Vincenzio said, "but I don't wanna ever see _either_ of your faces around my shop _ever_ again! Ya got that?"

Sparks nodded. "Loud and clear. Again, I am so sorry for my cousin's behaviour. Have a good day."

He then promptly turned around and briskly grabbed Ziggy's paw. "C'mon, cuz," he said as he started to drag the confused Buizel away, "You and I are gonna have a serious talk. I mean really, what's your mom going to say? What's _my_ mom gonna say?"

The crowd parted to let them through, while the Machamp returned to his store. Ziggy didn't protest as Sparks dragged him a couple blocks down the street. He then quickly turned down a small side street that was devoid of Pokémon, except for a couple down at the far end, and ducked under the awning of a nearby building.

"That was close," he said to Ziggy, letting out a breath of relief, "That could've gone badly."

'Bewildered' could not have been a more apt description for the mud-covered Buizel. He looked like his head was spinning and was still trying to catch up on what had just happened.

"Hey, are you all right?" Sparks asked him.

Ziggy blinked a couple of times. "Ah…Y-yeah…" he murmured softly, "I'm okay…"

"Good. That's good to hear. He really went too far. There was no need to hoist you up by your tail like that…"

"Y…You…" Ziggy was giving him an odd look.

"Hm?"

"You just…" A touch of awe graced his expression. "Why…did you do that…?"

Sparks tilted his head. "Huh? Do what? Get you out of that situation?"

Ziggy furrowed his brow and frowned a little. "All…that money…"

"Oh," Sparks replied, "Yeah, that was extortion. No question about it. I'd hazard a guess and say you didn't steal 300 Poké worth of food from him."

"Why, though…?" Ziggy murmured.

Sparks gave him a confused look. The Raichu was noticing that Ziggy was a lot more talkative this time around. "Because I didn't want things to escalate. I wanted to get you out of that situation."

"But I…" he said, his voice trailing off, "I…" He then averted his gaze and grimaced before finishing his sentence in a whisper. "…I stole from you."

"What? You mean when we first met? That's in the past, Ziggy. Forget about that."

"I…" Ziggy murmured, but then seemed to be struck speechless.

"I have to say, though…" Sparks said, adopting a more serious tone, "I'm a little disappointed to see that you're still stealing things."

Ziggy frowned and whined, looking like a scolded cub.

"Still just trying to feed yourself, though…Right?"

He nodded pitifully.

"Are you hungry right now?"

Ziggy grimaced and nodded again. It looked like he was going to shed a tear.

Sparks reached forward and cupped the Buizel's chin, gently forcing him to look up into his eyes. "Then come with me," he said, plain and simple.

"Mm…?" Ziggy whined softly.

"I meant what I said last time, and I still mean it now. I want to help you, Ziggy. I want to make things better for you. You ran away last time and I still don't know why, and that really hurt me. It hurt because it made me feel like I'd failed." Sparks sighed softly and added, "When it comes to helping others, I _hate_ failing."

"You…" Ziggy muttered, "You still…?"

"Absolutely. I don't want you to go back out there and risk getting beaten up by any more Machamp. You don't want that, do you?"

"N-no…"

"Come on, buddy. I can only look the other way when you steal things so many times…"

That seemed to strike a chord with the younger Pokémon. Before he could respond, though, he suddenly gasped and darted around so that he was hiding behind Sparks. The Raichu glanced around in confusion, wondering what had spooked him.

A moment later, a Persian casually strolled by. He gave the two of them a brief look, but otherwise did not pay attention to them at all. A few seconds later and he was gone. Sparks pursed his lips and turned back to look at Ziggy, who was cowering behind him and even trembling a little.

"Oh boy…" he bemoaned, "This is worse than I thought." Ziggy was still paying attention to the Persian's retreating form, so Sparks tapped him on the head. "Ziggy," he said firmly, "Will you come with me?"

Ziggy turned to look up at him. The expression he wore was different than their first meeting. There was just as much fear, but Sparks couldn't see as much distrust in the Buizel's eyes. He briefly glanced back in the general direction of the Machamp's stall, and Sparks figured he was thinking about what had just happened.

"Please, Ziggy, let me help you."

It took him another moment of silent contemplation but then, finally, Ziggy looked up at him once more and nodded softly.

Sparks smiled. "You'll let me help?"

"P…Please…" Ziggy whispered.

"Absolutely, buddy." Sparks then squatted down so that he was closer to eye level with the Buizel and gave him a comforting smile. "Just come with me, all right? We can make things better."

Ziggy didn't hesitate this time before nodding. He then paused, looking as if a thought occurred to him. "W…Will they…let me in…?"

Sparks tilted his head. "Hm? What do you mean?"

"I…" He bit his lip and glanced down. "I…I'm a thief…"

"Naw," Sparks shook his head, "In my mind, you're a thief but you're not a criminal. We don't let criminals in, no, but you'll be fine. Trust me. As long as you don't give us any reason to kick you out, we won't kick you out."

Ziggy looked up at him once again, and Sparks thought he saw just a glimmer of hope in the young Buizel's eyes. "Y…yeah…?"

Sparks nodded again. "Absolutely. We've helped plenty of Pokémon just like you."

He seemed to accept this and nodded softly once more. There was still an air of heavy anxiety and fear floating around him, but Sparks' altruistic actions before seemed to have earned his trust a tiny bit. He still looked wary, though. Sparks got the feeling that this wasn't the first time somebody had seemingly offered him something good, only for things to eventually turn sour.

Ziggy then stiffened and his eyes opened a little wider. He gave Sparks a questioning look and murmured, "Does…this mean I have…to…?"

Sparks already knew where that sentence was going. "Yes, we're gonna go clean off the mud."

Ziggy's breath briefly caught in his throat.

"I'm sorry, buddy," Sparks said sympathetically, "But if we don't wash it off now then we're just gonna have to wash it off later. I might be able to persuade Carmen to let you in like that, but it wouldn't be for very long. Besides, it's really not good for you. It can't be healthy."

"Mnn…" the Buizel whined, glancing away. Just like before, he looked a lot more stressed out now that the topic of him taking a bath had been brought up. Sparks still didn't understand it at all, but he tried to be more patient this time.

"So? What do you say?" Sparks asked him.

At first, Ziggy looked mildly panicked, as if he were caught on the spot. Then a look of thought crossed his expression for a moment. "Umm…?" he said as he turned to look at the Raichu, but trailed off with a questioning look.

"Sparks," he said, reminding Ziggy of his name.

"R-right… Sparks…D-do you promise?"

Sparks raised his eyebrows. "Hm? Promise what?"

Ziggy bit his lip, and then continued. "If I…I-If I wash off the…m-mud…Do you promise? D-do you still promise to…take me to the…" He swallowed a lump in his throat. "Do you promise to still help me?" he then blurted out.

Sparks was slightly taken aback by this question. "…What? Of course I do. You think I'm gonna…?" As he spoke, though, he saw the pleading, almost desperate expression on Ziggy's face and trailed off. For whatever reason, this was extremely important to him. "I do promise," he said, "This isn't going to change anything, I promise." He then chuckled and added, "I mean, unless you have something horribly racist spray-painted on your fur, I can't imagine any way that seeing what's under that mud is going to change my mind."

He had meant that statement as a joke, but Ziggy only bit his lip again. _Did_ he have…? No, that would be ridiculous.

"C'mon, buddy," Sparks said, "It's gonna be okay. Just come with me."

Ziggy gulped nervously, but then nodded his head. "O-okay…"

Sparks then grabbed onto the Buizel's paw and started leading him back towards the beach. He took a straight path directly to the perimeter road, intending to get Ziggy away from the public eye as quickly as he could. They didn't run into many other Pokémon along the way, though the few they did pass by gave them a hard stare.

He heard Ziggy whimper quietly a few times when this happened.

Thankfully, they made it out of the city and down the road to the beach without incident. The beach was still unoccupied, so Sparks didn't hesitate to lead Ziggy down there. He then stood off to the side and gestured for Ziggy to get into the water.

Again, there was quite a bit of hesitation and fear in response. Ziggy looked at the water as if it could kill him with just a single touch. He was breathing heavily, looking like he was trying to calm himself down without much success.

"Do you want me to come in with you?" Sparks asked him, "I don't mind if you want me to support you."

Ziggy shook his head. "No, no. I-I'll do it…"

"Okay. Just let me know if I can help."

Sparks sat down on a piece of driftwood nearby and waited for Ziggy to get into the water. Ziggy looked like he was on the verge of tears, and Sparks almost spoke up again. However, before he did, Ziggy started marching slowly towards the water.

He flinched and hesitated when a wave hit his paws, and Sparks saw a shiver run through his body. He kept going, though, and slowly waded out into the surf. There was a frown etched across his muzzle, but he didn't stop.

The mud started to come off almost instantly, and started to cloud the water around him. It made it so that Sparks couldn't see anything beneath the surface, so all he could see was the mud-covered parts of the Buizel that were still above the surface. Ziggy kept going until he was up to his neck, and then started swimming. He went out a couple more metres, using the inflated ring around his neck to float.

He paused there, turning back to give Sparks an unsure look. Sparks gave him a friendly wave of encouragement. It seemed the Buizel could swim after all, and he didn't really seem afraid of the water itself. Honestly, Sparks was still at a loss as to what could be causing all of this strife.

Ziggy continued to float there for a few seconds, looking very unsure of himself. He shut his eyes tight for a couple of seconds. Sparks was about to call something out to him, but suddenly Ziggy took a deep breath, deflated his floatation ring, and dunked his head beneath the waves. Sparks leaned forward and squinted. He could just _barely_ see Ziggy's silhouette beneath the surface, and it looked like he was using his paws to voraciously scrub the mud off of him. As a Water-Type, Ziggy would be able to hold his breath for a really long time underwater, and so would probably stay submerged until all of the mud was gone.

After a while, the silhouette started moving closer to the shore. Ziggy swam back to the point where he could stand up, and even swam a little further as if trying to prolong his time beneath the surface. He hesitated, remaining submerged for a few moments, but then finally breached the surface with a loud gasp for air.

Oh.

…_Oh_, that made a lot more sense.

All of the mud had been cleaned off, finally revealing the Buizel underneath. He stood there in the shallow water, with only his head and floatation ring above the surface. Ziggy was looking up at Sparks, his expression shy and very nervous. Even though most of his body was still underwater, Sparks could already see what Ziggy had been hiding.

Where Sparks expected to see fur in a rich orange colour, like pretty much any other Buizel out there, he instead saw pale golden fur. The floatation ring, which was supposed to be yellow, was as white as Ziggy's eyes.

He was a different colour. As Ziggy eventually worked up the courage to slowly walk out of the water and back to shore, Sparks could see more golden fur across his whole body. Ziggy looked incredibly self-conscious, glancing away from Sparks bashfully now that his secret was revealed.

Pokémon, as a species, were very uniform when it came to their appearance. While there was some variation in pattern, size, texture and other things here and there, most of it was very minute and hard to spot. The biggest differences one could find between Pokémon of the same species, aside from gender dimorphism, was different heights. Statistically, if one were to gather a thousand Raichu into one room, they would all be the same in almost every way visually.

Seeing a Pokémon who had a completely different pigment was _extremely_ rare. It was estimated that for at least every four _thousand_ Pokémon of a given species, only one would be a different colour.

Sparks realized he was staring. "Ah, okay. Good," he said, "Got all of the mud off? That's good."

The frown on Ziggy's muzzle told volumes. He very slowly, very bashfully made his way across the beach towards Sparks. He looked incredibly upset. He couldn't bring himself to look at Sparks at all. The poor Buizel looked so depressed and anxious, and perhaps even a little ashamed. As he got closer, Sparks thought he looked like he was on the verge of tears again.

"Hey," he said, stepping forward to meet him, "Everything okay?"

A tiny whine bubbled up from his throat, but he said nothing.

"I'm a dummy," Sparks said, "I didn't think about bringing a towel or anything. We should get going before you catch a cold or something. Or…does that apply to Water-Types?"

Ziggy had been looking around anxiously, as if looking for onlookers who might see him in this uncovered state. After Sparks had spoken, though, his eyebrows shot up and he finally turned to look at the Raichu.

"Are you ready, buddy?" Sparks said jovially, "The Society's just up the hill from here. Let's go!"

"…Huh?" Ziggy murmured, looking stunned and confused.

Sparks turned to walk off, but Ziggy remained frozen on the spot. "You still comin'? We can stay here if you want, but it's not really the best day for a day at the beach." He punctuated his statement with a chuckle.

"I…" Ziggy murmured, fidgeting on the spot for a moment, "Y-yeah…Sure…" He looked like he was having difficulty processing something.

Sparks gestured for him to follow and said, "Let's go then! No time like the present."

With that, he set off. It took him a moment, but Ziggy started following him as he went back up the road towards the city. He ended up walking quite close behind Sparks, but he didn't mind. Every time he glanced back, the Buizel looked like he was in a state of disbelief. He allowed himself a silent chuckle at Ziggy's reaction, but a moment later he sighed.

While incredibly rare, Pokémon like Ziggy were not an unknown phenomenon. The official term for Pokémon like him was 'Alternately Coloured Pokémon', or 'ACP', and almost every species had at least one documented case of this. Some folks called them 'Different Coloured', or even just 'Colour Pokémon'. Most Pokémon colloquially called them 'Shiny Pokémon' because of a wide-spread misconception that Pokémon like him sparkled when they were in the sunshine.

Unfortunately, though, there was one other name for Pokémon like him. It was a name more prominently used than all the others.

'Freaks'.


	3. The Rescue Society

Chapter 3 \- **The Rescue Society**

Ziggy practically clung to Sparks the entire way from the beach to the Society building.

It was saddening to see just how afraid the Buizel was of being seen by others. It wasn't hard for Sparks to imagine that he probably spent almost all of his time caked in mud so that nobody saw his different colours. To him, being seen as a dirty, filthy street punk was better than being seen as a shiny. A thought like that was simply heartbreaking.

"Come on, buddy," Sparks said to him in an encouraging voice, "There's nothing to be afraid of. Nobody's going to bother you."

Sparks did not challenge this behaviour as they approached the Society's headquarters. It was not exactly healthy behaviour, but Ziggy looked like he was already at the end of his rope. Sparks moved as quickly as he could. He had interacted with shiny Pokémon before, but none of them were nearly as skittish and nervous as Ziggy was.

Luckily, they managed to make it to the grounds of the Society without any issue. The worst they got was a few seconds of staring from some passing Pokémon. Soon enough, they stood before the massive building that housed the main branch of the Rescue Society. Sparks led Ziggy through the front gate and onto the grounds.

"Well, here we are!"

Now that they were past the gate and beyond the row of hedges that surrounded the property, there was a fully unobstructed view of the Society headquarters. A sprawling three storey building that rose up impressively from the hilltop that it stood upon. There was nothing particularly unique about its outward appearance, aside from the large logo of the Rescue Society emblazoned above the front door. Yet, it still projected a radiance of prestige, power, and leadership. Perhaps it was the way the building was kept in pristine condition, looking like a perfectly-shaped present that was waiting to be opened. Its walls were a pale off-white colour, with the trimmings painted in a mix of blue and yellow, the colours of the Society. Its front doors were large and imposing, not terribly unlike the doors of a castle, but their bright colours invited others to come in at any time of the day.

While Ziggy was busy looking up at the building with a mix of awe and intimidation, Sparks quickly dragged him off to the side, away from the front door. He led him around a corner to the eastern side of the building, where a smaller, secondary entrance was located. This was the door that only Society members could open. It was sort of an 'Employee Only' entrance.

Sparks let go of Ziggy's paw and stepped up to the door. He thrust out his chest a little, moving his badge closer to the door as he did. The badge shimmered a little, as if the sun had just cast a ray of light on it, and the door clicked open a second later.

"All right, come on in," Sparks said invitingly as he stepped through the door. He turned around, but saw that Ziggy hadn't followed him in. The Buizel was standing outside of the door, looking up nervously at the rest of the building that was now towering above him.

"Ziggy?" Sparks spoke up, recapturing his attention, "It's okay. Come on in."

He still didn't move. "Um…I…" he murmured as he wrung his paws together. He lifted his head and gazed through the doorway, but gulped as a flash of nervousness spread across his expression.

Sparks stepped back into the doorframe and held out his paw. "Ziggy, it's okay. You're allowed to come inside. I promise you. I'm inviting you in, and that's all the permission you need to come in this way." He tried to smile reassuringly. "Come on. It's warmer in here."

The Buizel seemed to hedge on whether or not to come inside, until he finally reached out and took Sparks' paw, allowing the Raichu to lead him inside.

"There we go," Sparks said to him in a soft voice that conveyed the fact that it was okay for him to be here.

Ziggy nervously gazed at his surroundings. That side door led directly into the alumni common room, a fairly large room that was designed as a mix between a lounging area and a dining area. There was a long wooden table along one end of the room, with one singular, long bench on either side making it resemble an extended picnic bench. That was where meals were eaten, but alumni were known to sit there between meals to just discuss things and hang out. Also in the room were a pair of couches, a single beanbag chair, and a large whiteboard with all manner of colourful marks and labels on it.

Sparks explained to Ziggy what the room was, and then went on to explain why it was currently empty. "It's the middle of the day, so pretty much everybody is out doing their job in one way or another. No-one should really bother us here while I get things sorted out, although you might see one or two Pokémon. Don't worry, they're all very friendly. I swear on my life."

He led the Buizel to one end of the long table and motioned for him to sit down. Ziggy hesitated yet again before eventually taking a seat at the very edge of the table. Sparks recognized that he had sat himself on the bench in such a way that he could make a quick escape if he needed to.

"Stay there, and I'll get you a towel," Sparks said to the Buizel, who was still damp from his bath in the ocean. When Ziggy looked frightened, Sparks reassured him. "I'll be gone two seconds. The bathroom's right over there."

Despite its important function, there were only three other doors leading into the room. One lead to the main hallway, where most of the society's other amenities could be found. Another led to the society's private dorm rooms, where all of the alumni lived and slept.

And, the third was the bathroom. Sparks quickly darted over to that door and stepped inside, grabbing a towel off the rack near the door. He stepped back out a moment later, half-expecting Ziggy to have run off already. Luckily, the Buizel was still seated at the table. Sparks headed over and handed the towel to Ziggy, who hesitantly took it. As Sparks sat down across from him, Ziggy dried his fur.

"Welcome to the Rescue Society, Ziggy," Sparks spoke up.

Ziggy was still glancing at the room around him as he finished drying his fur. When he looked back at Sparks a moment later, he just looked confused.

"…You do know what the Rescue Society is…don't you?" Sparks asked dubiously.

Ziggy shook his head.

"What?" Sparks replied in disbelief, "Are you for real? What, have you been living under a rock for the past 30 years?" A moment later, he reeled himself back in. "You know what? Don't answer that." He cleared his throat. "The Rescue Society is a worldwide organization devoted to helping others," he explained, "We have a presence in every major city on the map, but right here in Radiant City is where it all started. This building is the main headquarters for the Rescue Society, while also serving Radiant City itself. I am one of the many alumni working here. Our goal is to help others out, wherever help is needed. Helping others is what we live for."

The Buizel simply sat there and listened to his spiel in silence, and then nodded afterwards.

"I can tell you more later, but the point is that we're here to help you, Ziggy. If you're in trouble, that's all the reason needed for you to be here. We're all gonna do our best to help you, however we can. Does that sound good?"

Ziggy bit his lip and glanced around nervously again. Oddly, after he had finished drying his fur, he had left the towel draped over his head and shoulders as if he was wearing it. Sparks waited patiently for him to say something, and eventually he managed to get out a few words.

"I…" he mumbled, "I can't…pay you back 300 Poké…"

Sparks' eyebrows raised up. "What? Oh, forget about that, Ziggy. You don't owe me anything. It's no big deal."

Ziggy just gave him a look that said 'Are you nuts?'

"I know it's a lot of money," Sparks said, "but I don't care. Honestly. The important thing was getting you out of that bad situation. And furthermore, while we're on the subject, let me just remind you that our services are free. What we're doing for you isn't going to cost you anything. We just want to help."

"Help…?" Ziggy said. His voice was very low and rough, making it seem as if this was the most he had talked in a long time. "You'd help…someone like me?"

"Of course we would!" Sparks replied, slightly taken aback, "Why wouldn't we? Ziggy, we're not going to treat you like a criminal here unless you steal something from _us_."

Ziggy shook his head. "No, it's not that…"

"Then what?"

His look soured and he glanced away. He only grumbled softly in reply.

"What, because you're a shiny?" Sparks replied, "Ziggy, don't be ridiculous. We don't discriminate here. We help everybody here, whether they're an ACP or not."

The look Ziggy gave him in return conveyed that the Buizel didn't believe his words, and Sparks sighed again. Shiny Pokémon, unfortunately, were not treated well by society. Hundreds of years ago, they were ostracized and treated as freaks of nature. Civilization has come a long way since then, but shinies are still looked down upon by many Pokémon. They're shunned by some, and even hated by others. Shinies often have to endure undeserved violence and mistreatment. It was usually very difficult for them to get jobs, and there were even some backwards-thinking places that outright _banned_ shinies, such as certain nightclubs and movie theatres.

Even from a young age, Sparks had found this behaviour disgusting. Thankfully, there were others out there who shared his sentiments towards shinies, but the number of such Pokémon was far too low. Sparks could even recall his mom and dad making some off-colour remarks about shinies from when he was a cub, which had always made him feel a bit put off.

Sparks now realized what Ziggy was doing with the towel. He was using it to try and hide the colour of his fur, even though it was only big enough to cover his head, and despite the fact that they were the only two in the room. Ziggy wasn't covered in mud anymore, which Sparks realized must have been something that gave the Buizel a sense of security, however small it may have been.

"Ziggy," he said, recapturing the Buizel's attention, "If anyone working here has a problem with your fur, then they won't be working here for much longer. Intolerance like that is not acceptable behaviour for an RSGA."

Ziggy's bewildered expression told Sparks that he didn't know what the acronym stood for.

"It means 'Rescue Society Guild Alumnus'," he explained, "It's sort of a blanket term for anybody who works for the guild. RSGA's get a badge like this one." Sparks pointed to the badge on his chest.

The Buizel examined the badge for a moment. "What's…an 'alumnus'?" he asked in a quiet voice.

Sparks snickered and replied, "A fancy word. It just means I trained here and now I work here."

"Oh…" The Buizel then fell silent and returned to nervously glancing at his surroundings. Sparks examined the other Pokémon, his expression troubled. He wanted to get more information out of Ziggy, but the Buizel was so jumpy and nervous. Ziggy looked like he didn't feel like talking at the moment.

"Food!" Sparks piped up, "I promised you food, didn't I?"

That particular word got Ziggy's attention.

"Heh…Sorry, Ziggy, I got distracted. What would you like? We've got all sorts of berries, we've got bread, jam, peanut butter…All kinds of good snacks. I'll get you a full meal later, but for now let's just get you something easy to snack on."

Ziggy blinked. "Full m…?"

"How about a PB&J sandwich?" he said, thinking about the bread that Ziggy had tried to steal but not wanting to bring it up.

"Uhh…" Ziggy murmured, looking up at Sparks anxiously, "S-sandwich…?" A bit of hope danced in his eyes briefly. "Um…S-sure, I'd like a sandwich…" His voice trailed off to a murmur, as if he was immediately afraid he had said something wrong.

Sparks smiled pleasantly and started to stand up. "No problem. I'll go get that right now."

Ziggy's demeanour changed the moment that Sparks stood up. He had started to look intrigued and somewhat hopeful at the prospect of food, but now looked panicked in the blink of an eye. He shot Sparks a terrified look and shrunk down in his seat. He didn't say a word, but Sparks quickly got the message.

The Raichu sat back down. "I can get somebody to pick it up for us," he said.

"Mmmn…" Ziggy whined, not looking very comfortable at all.

Sparks frowned as he looked at the Buizel, his concerns only growing. He then lifted a paw to his chest and tapped his badge. It glowed dimly and he spoke out loud. "Anybody in HQ?"

After a momentary pause, a male's voice emitted from the badge, just loud enough for both Pokémon to hear. "Kona here," it said, "What's up, Sparks?"

Ziggy was again staring wide-eyed at the badge. Sparks flashed him a quick grin, and then replied to the voice. "Hey, Kona. Can you do me a _huge_ huge favour?"

"Sure! Whatcha need?"

"Can you please go down to the kitchen and make a peanut butter and jam sandwich, then bring it to the common room? I'm pretty sure Liz isn't here right now."

The voice snickered and replied in a joking tone, "Gettin' lazy in your senior years?"

"It's not for me."

There was a short pause, and Kona's voice returned in a more serious tone. "Got it. I'll be down in a few minutes."

"Thanks so much, Kona. I appreciate it."

The badge went dark, and Sparks returned his attention to the somewhat mystified Buizel. "Handy things, aren't they?" he quipped.

"How did…?"

"They're crafted with psychic energy," Sparks explained, "When you want to use one of its features, it can read your thoughts so it knows what you want. Like, if I think about turning on the flashlight…" Sparks then tapped his badge again, causing it to suddenly glow quite brightly. Ziggy yelped in surprise. The badge was now shining at him just like a flashlight.

"Oops," Sparks said as he turned the light off, "Sorry. Didn't think that would get you right in the eyes. My mistake."

Ziggy nodded, thankfully looking like he wasn't upset at being briefly blinded.

There was a short moment of silence. Sparks was hoping that once Ziggy got some food in his belly, he would become a bit more talkative. He was being very careful not to overwhelm the incredibly skittish Pokémon that sat before him. It would only take a few minutes for Kona to get the sandwich anyway.

"S…Sparks…?"

The Raichu almost missed the tiny voice. "Hm? Yes?"

"Can I…C-can I really…get help here?"

Sparks' heart nearly shattered in two when he heard the quiet, pleading voice of the Buizel. "Of course, Ziggy. That's what we're here for. I saw you out there and I saw that you needed help, so I'm going to help you."

"…Why?"

It was as if Sparks had just been asked why Pokémon needed to breathe air. "Huh? Why not?"

Ziggy sighed and said, "I'm…a thief. I've…been a thief for a very, very long time."

"Do you want to be a thief?" Sparks asked.

"H-huh? N-no, not at all…!"

"Are you going to steal from _us_?"

Ziggy's eyes grew as wide as dinner plates. "No…!" he said in a very shaky voice, "N-no, n-never! I-I-I…I would never steal from a place like this…I'd…get caught for sure, and I…" He gulped. "I couldn't…I c-couldn't handle it…"

Sparks reached over and placed his paw over Ziggy's, causing the Buizel to look up at him. "It's okay, Ziggy. You don't have to be a thief anymore. We're going to help you get on your paws. Even if it's something that's going to be difficult for us, we'll still do it. As long as you don't break our trust, you're our guest here. You'll get free food, free shelter, and free help." Sparks chuckled. "You're probably thinking that stealing wouldn't be worth giving all of that up, right?"

"F-free…?" Ziggy murmured.

Before he could say anything else, though, the door on the other end of the room clicked open. Ziggy reacted immediately, and started to dart out of his seat and run for the hills. The towel flew off of his head and fell to the ground. Sparks had to quickly stand up and intervene. "Ziggy! Hey! Calm down, okay? Calm down. It's okay. He's a friend of mine. He won't hurt you."

Ziggy had gotten halfway out of his seat before Sparks had stopped him. For a moment he just stayed there haphazardly, breathing quickly and staring up at Sparks. Then, he nervously glanced over his shoulder to behold the newcomer.

Standing in the doorway was a short Dewott holding a plate with a sandwich on it and a glass of water. Like Sparks, he had a badge clipped to his chest fur. The Dewott was looking in on the scene with wide eyes and was refraining from moving beyond the doorframe.

"Ziggy, that's Kona," Sparks said, introducing the newcomer.

This seemed to relax Ziggy, but only slightly. He was now staring at Kona with an anxious expression, his chest still rising and falling rapidly. Sparks urged him to return to a proper sitting position, and he did so somewhat reluctantly. Not once did he take his eyes off of the Dewott.

"Come on in, Kona. This is Ziggy."

Kona entered the room slowly, closing the door behind him, and carefully approached the end of the long table. He had adopted a friendly smile, but Ziggy was still staring at him warily. Once Kona was close enough, he reached over and placed the sandwich and water on the table.

"Hi there," he said, "As Sparks already said, my name's Kona. Welcome to the Rescue Society."

Ziggy didn't react. He was as still as a statue. Sparks looked at him and realized he was shivering a little.

Kona seemed to pick up on this, thankfully, and said, "You look like you're pretty hungry, so I'll let you enjoy your sandwich. It was nice to meet you." He then bowed his head respectfully in lieu of a pawshake, and then promptly turned around and left. Ziggy still kept his eyes trained on him until he had left the room and shut the door once more.

"See? What did I tell ya?" Sparks said, slightly jolting the Buizel back into reality, "We're all friendly here."

Ziggy's eyes briefly darted down to Sparks' badge, and appeared to make the connection in his mind. "He's…an…?"

"An RSGA, yes. He's been here for a couple of years. He joined just after he evolved from an Oshawott."

"…Oh."

Sparks sat back down across from him and indicated the sandwich with his paw. "Go ahead, buddy. Eat up. Don't worry, I don't mind waiting."

Ziggy looked down at the sandwich, as if suddenly remembering that it was there. Within seconds, he was practically drooling. His eyes started darting around, first to Sparks and then to the door where Kona had gone. It was like a window into the mind of somebody having a conundrum.

Sparks didn't have to verbally encourage him, though. The allure of food was too much for Ziggy to resist. He reached down with his paws, hesitating for a moment before actually touching it, and then picked it up. He looked up at Sparks one last time for confirmation that he was indeed allowed to eat it.

Then, he took a big bite. He chewed slowly at first, but Sparks could practically see the magic quickly growing in his expression. His eyes grew wide as he chewed his first bite, and one could practically hear the heavenly choir.

Once he swallowed his first bite, Ziggy then began to ravenously devour the rest of the sandwich. Sparks watched in amusement as the Buizel practically inhaled the snack. He was holding it close to his chest, as if subconsciously afraid that somebody would take it away, and he took bites from it so quickly that Sparks worried he would get the hiccups.

In no time at all, the sandwich was completely gone, crusts and all. There were hardly even any crumbs left. Ziggy was chewing his last bite, wearing an expression of relief and satisfaction. He didn't smile, but Sparks could see the sense of bliss overcoming the hungry Buizel. Even just a simple sandwich like that had to have tasted absolutely incredible to him.

"Good?" Sparks enquired.

Ziggy's eyes fluttered back open, and he reached for the glass of water. In seconds, he downed the entire contents of the glass.

"Whoa. Slow down there, buddy."

"Dear Arceus…" Ziggy murmured in a far-off voice, "I…Th-that was incredible…"

Sparks snickered softly. "You looked like you needed some real food."

"I…" Ziggy slowly turned to look at him, "I…I haven't eaten something like that in…in…I don't even remember…"

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," Sparks said with a smile.

"It tasted so good…" Ziggy spent a moment just looking at him, and the room was silent for a short time. Eventually, Ziggy finally spoke up again in a very quiet voice. "Th…Thank you…"

"Ah, you don't have to thank us for that. Free food is one of our staples."

Ziggy shook his head. "No. No, I…Thank you, S-Sparks… I didn't…want to believe it. But you really gave me…good food. Food I didn't have to steal…"

Sparks frowned, and leaned across the table a bit. "You've been through a lot, haven't you?" he asked in a compassionate tone. He was thankful, at least, that the Buizel was a bit more talkative now that he had food in his stomach.

"I…I don't know what to say…I don't think I can remember the last time anybody gave me…free food…"

"Why don't you tell me a little bit about yourself?" Sparks asked, "What's the story of Ziggy?"

The Buizel frowned in response. "It's not a happy one…" he mumbled. He then sighed and leaned his head on one of his paws. "There's not even much of a story to tell. I live on the streets, I sleep in alleyways, and I steal something to eat every day. I…only steal so I don't starve…and sometimes it feels like I can just barely manage that."

Sparks gave him a troubled look. "But what about before all of that? What happened? Why did you end up homeless?"

"Nothing happened. It's been like that my whole life. Just been me, alone on the streets."

"Your…whole life?" Sparks blinked. "…How old are you?"

"Ummm…" Ziggy appeared confused. "I dunno. I don't really keep track."

Sparks skewed his lips. Ziggy looked like he was at least 15, but it was startling to find somebody who didn't even know their own age. "That's…really all you know? Being on the streets since you were a cub?"

Ziggy nodded sadly. "Pretty much…"

Sparks was about to say something a bit more uplifting when the door swung open once more. Just like before, Ziggy immediately panicked and started to dart for safety. Sparks reached out and firmly grasped his paw, uttering some calming words and managing to stop Ziggy before he got out of his seat. "Good heavens, buddy. _Relax_…" he said in a slightly exasperated tone.

"Oh! I'm sorry. Am I interrupting something?"

Sparks and Ziggy turned to regard the Pokémon that had come through the door. It was a short, fluffy Eevee with a badge on his chest and a bag over his shoulder.

"Hi, Terry," Sparks greeted him, "It's okay. I'm helping Ziggy here get settled with us." He then addressed Ziggy and said, "That's Terry. He's one of our newer guild members."

Sparks was astounded at the level of fear in Ziggy's expression. Terry was about as non-threatening as Pokémon could get. Though he hated to be described as such, he was an adorable fluffy ball of poof. Yet, Ziggy still stared at him with the same wide-eyed expression one might give a rampaging Aggron.

"Hi, Ziggy!" Terry greeted him cheerfully. He then turned to Sparks and said, "I was gonna hang out here and read, but I can do it in my room instead."

"You don't have to if you don't want to," Sparks replied.

Terry took another look at Ziggy and then shrugged. "It's okay. I don't mind. I wanted somewhere quiet, and my room's just as quiet. It's fine."

"All right, then. Thanks, Terry."

The Eevee smiled and nodded, and then began to make his way to the door on the other side of the room. Ziggy watched him the entire way with a fearful and self-conscious look. Sparks again frowned, realizing the extent to which Ziggy was failing in basic social situations.

Terry paused before opening the door to the guild members' dorms and turned to look at them once more. "It was nice to meet you, Ziggy. Welcome to the guild."

As Sparks expected, Ziggy didn't respond. Terry frowned a bit at this, but only for a second.

"Hey, Terry? Before you go," Sparks spoke up, "Is Carmen busy?"

"Carmen?" Terry replied, "I saw her walking through the halls a moment ago, so…?"

"Ah, she might still be busy but that's the best I'm gonna get. Thanks, Terry."

Terry nodded, and then gave one more parting smile to the Buizel before he left the room. Ziggy didn't relax until the door clicked shut.

"I forgot that he has the day off today," Sparks commented.

"C…Carmen…?"

"Huh? Oh, right. Hang on a sec…" Sparks then tapped his badge again, making it glow once more. "Carmen? I'm sorry to bother you, but there is an issue that requires your presence in the common room."

There was a noticeable pause before the badge glowed again and a somewhat gruff female's voice emitted from it. "Sparks, are you certain this is something that requires _my_ presence?"

"Yes ma'am."

There was another pause. "All right, I'll be down in a bit."

The badge dimmed, and Sparks returned his attention to Ziggy. He was slightly surprised to see the Buizel giving him a wide-eyed, fearful look. "Who…?" Ziggy murmured.

"Oh, sorry buddy. Carmen is our guildmaster. She runs the guild that specifically serves Radiant City. Technically, she's only a few steps below running the entire Rescue Society, so a lot of our alumni answer to her. She's the one I need to talk to in order to get you set up with us. Y'know, get you a room to sleep in and all that."

Ziggy didn't look any less fearful, so Sparks added, "Don't worry, she's very friendly. She just has a bit of a smarmy attitude sometimes because she has so much work to do. When it comes to clients like you, she's very polite."

Still, this didn't really seem to lower Ziggy's anxiety. This troubled Sparks, and he wondered if the Buizel had an aversion to Pokémon in positions of power. It was likely that, due to his past, he'd had unfavourable run-ins with the police before.

"Ziggy. Buddy. Relax, okay? I've known Carmen for a long time. I was here since before she became guildmaster. We're old friends, she and I. She might be a bit rough on the outside sometimes, but you don't have to worry about her. So breathe, okay? Or you're gonna pass out."

Ziggy whined softly. "Okay…" he said in a tone that was clearly unconvinced.

Sparks realized he was being a bit intense and reeled himself back in. "I'm sorry if this is prying a bit," he asked, "but why did you react to Terry the way you did? Terry wouldn't hurt a Caterpie. He hasn't even taken combat training yet."

He just whined again and hung his head.

After a moment of silence, Sparks said, "It runs that deep, huh?" His heart ached again as he took in the sight of the pathetic-looking Buizel. There was still dirt on his fur from when he had been covered in mud and he was far too skinny. He had a very tired look in his eyes, despite how alert and afraid they could be sometimes.

"Well, cheer up, buddy," Sparks spoke up, "After we talk to Carmen we'll get you a full meal, okay? A nice, real dinner."

Again, the mention of food grabbed Ziggy's attitude almost instantly. "M…more…?" he murmured.

"Oh, heck yeah. We gotta get some meat on those bones, buddy. Speakin' of which, I gotta admit, you move _really_ fast. I honestly didn't expect you to be so swift when, well, you're malnourished and covered in mud."

"Ah, well…" Ziggy rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and glanced away. "That's…why Pokémon call me Ziggy. That's how I got that name. Y'know, 'cus I zig and zag everywhere. I've always been kinda fast…"

"Oh, really?" Sparks asked, intrigued, "Who gave you that name? Did you have friends when you were younger?"

"I don't know, it was when I was a _really_ young cub."

Sparks studied the Buizel for a moment. A few interesting thoughts started to cloud his brain, but he wasn't able to give them any attention because the door opened a few moments later. Ziggy again tried to bolt, and this time Sparks was too distracted to calm him down in time. However, instead of running away, Ziggy simply ducked underneath the end of the table and nervously peeked over the top.

Standing in the doorway was a tall Braixen, about a half a foot taller than Sparks was. She too had a badge clipped to her chest, but hers looked a little bit different in design. She took in the scene inside of the room with a calculating eye, quickly assessing the situation. Her fur was a bit scruffy in places, but Sparks knew that was because she was very busy and didn't really care about looking perfect. She wore around her neck a blue scarf that was draped over one of her shoulders.

"Hey, Carmen," Sparks greeted her, inviting her in with a wave of his paw.

"Hello, Sparks," she replied as she stepped into the room and closed the door behind her. She made her way over to the table, studying the hiding Buizel the entire time. "And hello to you as well," she said to him, "Who might you be?"

Sparks gave Ziggy a chance to answer for himself, but it looked like no words were coming out of his mouth. As Carmen had approached, he had sunk a little lower beneath the table. Ziggy was already intimidated by him, and Carmen was even taller than he was.

"This is Ziggy," Sparks eventually replied, "He needs a place to stay and a bite to eat."

"I see," Carmen replied. Instead of sitting down at the table, she instead took a step to the side and knelt down so that she was at eye-level with the frightened Buizel. "Welcome to the Rescue Society, Ziggy. My name is Carmen." She held out one of her paws for a pawshake, and Ziggy flinched at it. She immediately withdrew it but continued to smile warmly at him.

"It looks like you're going through tough times," Carmen commented, giving him a sympathetic frown.

A tiny little squeak of a whine was the only sound Ziggy made, and Sparks could see that he was now shivering. "Buddy," he said in a calm voice, "Relax. If there's anybody you can trust in this place, it's Carmen. She's the guildmaster for a reason."

Carmen simply remained in place, looking at Ziggy and smiling gently. A heavy silence fell across the room and nobody moved for a couple of tense minutes. Carmen never said or did anything else. She simply remained kneeling there, looking at the Buizel and giving him a friendly, disarming smile.

Finally, the silence was broken as Ziggy gulped. "H…H-hi…" he chirped in a hoarse voice.

"Hello," Carmen replied softly and sweetly.

Ziggy whined and shrunk back a little.

"Not much of a talker, hm? That's okay." Carmen then lifted her head to regard Sparks and said, "What happened?"

"Ah…Long story short, he's been living on the streets for years and stealing food to survive. A shop-owner caught him trying to steal food and threatened him with violence, so I stepped in to disarm the situation. I offered him our services afterwards."

Carmen nodded and said, "I see." She then looked at Ziggy again. "We can certainly get that set up for you. We offer temporary lodging for those who need it, during which time we can help you get back on the right track. Does that sound okay?"

Ziggy, still frozen on the spot, gulped and then nodded subtly.

"Great," Carmen replied, "I will get you registered then." She then stood up, which made Ziggy flinch just a bit, and turned to the Raichu once more. "Sparks, could I talk to you for a moment?"

"Sure," he replied, and then got up from the table. Ziggy let out a confused and worried whine, and made a feeble attempt to reach out with his paw and grab Sparks' hind leg. When Sparks turned to look at him, Ziggy looked terrified.

"I'll just be a minute," he said reassuringly, "I'll just be through that door over there." He then pointed to the doors that led to the alumni dorms. Carmen usually liked to have one-on-one conversations in one of the presently-empty dorms.

Ziggy didn't look reassured at all. There was a now-familiar look of growing panic in his expression. Sparks was confused at first, but then realized that the frightened Buizel might have latched onto him as a sort of security anchor. "I'll just be a couple minutes," he repeated, trying to give Ziggy a calming smile, "You have _nothing_ to worry about here. If anybody asks who you are, you can just say you're with me. If you really, really need me, then come and knock on that door. Okay?"

Still, Ziggy didn't look too pleased with this notion. Eventually, though, he did give Sparks a nervous nod and slowly made his way back to his seat. Satisfied that the Buizel would be fine for the moment, Sparks turned to Carmen again. Carmen had been watching this exchange with a slightly troubled look. When she saw he was ready, she led him over to the door on the far side. They exited, with Sparks giving Ziggy one last reassuring smile.

On the other side of the door was a simple hallway, like one might expect to find in a hotel or a school. There was a long row of doors on either side of the hallway, some of which had nameplates on them. Carmen used her badge to open the door immediately to their right, which was unlabeled, and the two headed inside. This room was completely bare, without a single article of furniture in it. It was one of the rooms that would be given away should they get any new members.

Once the door was closed, Carmen gave Sparks a look and rubbed her forehead. She let out a quick sigh and then simply said, "Sparks…" in a slightly exasperated voice.

"Yes, ma'am?" Sparks replied.

"Sparks, we've talked about this," Carmen said, giving him a flat look, "The Rescue Society cannot take in every single homeless Pokémon you find out in Radiant City. I know your intentions are good, but we just simply don't have enough room or the resources. There are other services out there that can help with homelessness."

"I know, I know," Sparks interjected, holding up his paws in defense, "I didn't bring him in because he's homeless, Carmen. I brought him in because I could see that he needs our help. _Bad_. I mean, you saw him out there. He was absolutely terrified of you from the moment he saw you."

"He did seem rather skittish," Carmen commented.

"'Skittish' doesn't even begin to describe it, I'm afraid. He's terrified of everybody else, and he told me it's simply because he's a shiny and he's been mistreated in the past."

"Oh dear…" Carmen started to lose a bit of her stern expression.

"Carmen, when I found him out there he was covered from head to toe in mud. He told me he keeps mud on his fur all the time so that others don't see the colour of his fur. He nearly had a panic attack when I told him he had to take a bath and wash it off. And it isn't just you. He panicked when _Terry_ entered the room."

Carmen was silent for a moment. She was the boss of almost everybody working in the building, but she was never one for formalities and such. Sparks had known the Braixen for long enough to know that he could talk to her like she was just a friend, and wasn't afraid to debate things with her. She wasn't even a fan of being called 'ma'am', and she simply tolerated it.

Above all, though, Sparks knew the reason why Carmen was the guildmaster. It was because she had a big heart.

"How would you describe him, Sparks?" she eventually asked.

"Scared, alone, hopeless, feeling like he's trapped…Words I would not use to describe him are criminal, vagabond, or dangerous. I am certain that he's not going to cause any trouble for us, and I think we can really help him."

Carmen nodded thoughtfully. To be fair, Sparks understood her side of the argument. In his early days as a Raichu, he had come back to the Society with many homeless Pokémon in tow, some of which were not the most savoury of characters. It had just hurt his heart too much to see Pokémon without a roof over their heads. Carmen eventually convinced him that homelessness programs in Radiant City would be better suited for most of them.

"He told me he's been homeless for as long as he can remember, because he's so afraid of others mistreating him."

"I suppose we can give him a room. We're not exactly strapped for space at the moment. I just wanted to make sure you weren't overstepping this time."

Sparks nodded. "I understand, Carmen. Thank you. Although…I was thinking that it might be better if we could house him here, in the alumni wing."

"What? Why would we do that?"

"Because he's so frightened and prone to panic. I know most of the Pokémon we shelter here are nice and friendly, but we do have a few…'characters' here. I would hate for him to be frightened off, and I thought it would be helpful if he has a room near someone he trusts. Right now, I think I'm the closest thing to someone he trusts."

Carmen crossed her forelimbs and pursed her lips for a moment, but then said, "I'll consider it. Let's just worry about getting him registered and giving him a proper meal for now."

"Right," Sparks nodded, "Thanks, Carmen."

"You're a good Pokémon, Sparks," she replied, "Just watch that your good heart doesn't get you into trouble."

The two exited the room and made their way back to the common room. Sparks was feeling good, happy that Carmen could see things the way he did. As soon as Sparks opened the door, though, he immediately saw that something was wrong.

The room was completely empty. Ziggy was nowhere to be seen. The only sign of him that remained were the empty plate and drinking glass on the table.

"Ziggy?" Sparks called out, hoping that the Buizel was just hiding under the table. Nobody answered.

"Where did he go?" Carmen asked from behind him.

The answer came to him a moment later when he turned his head to the side. The door to the outside, the one he and Ziggy had initially entered through, was wide open. As it was an employees-only door, all RSGA's were strictly instructed to close it behind them. As such, there was only one logical explanation as to what had happened.

Ziggy had bolted.

"No…" Sparks slumped, his ears and tail drooping as a feeling of defeat overcame him. The first time Ziggy had run away from him had hurt, but this was like a punch to the gut. He had really, truly thought he'd broken through to the poor Buizel. Apparently not, though. Something had spooked him, and now he was gone again.

"He ran away?" Carmen spoke up from behind him. It wasn't so much a question as it was a simple observation of fact.

Sparks simply hung his head.


	4. On the Streets Again

Chapter 4 \- **On the Streets Again**

Evening had arrived in Radiant City, and night would soon be on its way. The streets weren't quite as busy at this time, but there were still tons of Pokémon going about their business. The street lights, powered by Electric-type Pokémon in a power plant somewhere, could only offer so much light to the streets below.

Sparks was on the move. He was on a mission.

After Ziggy had jumped ship, so to speak, Carmen had tried to convince Sparks that he was a Pokémon that simply didn't want their help and no good would come from forcing it on him. Sparks had begrudgingly accepted that argument at first, but his mind was changed a few hours later.

The fact was that Sparks was worried about Ziggy. He had spent enough time in the company of the skittish little Buizel to know that it was quite simply not a good idea for him to be living on the streets of Radiant City. Sparks was determined to help him, one way or another. If Ziggy refused to come back to the Society, then Sparks would offer to bring the help to him. He would set up routine visits to check in on him, bring him some food from time to time, and just make sure that he was staying out of trouble.

The only problem, of course, was finding him.

Sparks was kicking himself for listening to Carmen. If he had ran out the door as soon as they had discovered Ziggy was gone, Sparks would've been much more likely to find him. Now the Buizel could be anywhere in the city or, worse, no longer in the city at all.

With nothing else to go on, he had started his search near Toby's stall. This was the general area where he had encountered Ziggy the last two times, so Sparks was hoping it was his 'home turf' or something. Toby hadn't seen him, though. Sparks had tried calling out Ziggy's name a few times, but all that had earned him was some irritated looks from passers-by.

He was presently expanding his search area, trying as hard as he could to locate the Buizel before the sun went down completely. That's when his badge started to glow.

"Sparks?" It was Carmen's voice.

The Raichu grimaced a little, but then replied. "Yeah?"

"Are you doing what I think you're doing?"

"Yes, ma'am."

There was an audible sigh from the other side of the conversation. "Sparks…"

"Sorry, but Danika gave me the day off and you approved it. This is my free time and I am using it how I choose to use it."

"I know, Sparks," Carmen replied in an even tone, "I am not going to try and stop you, but have you thought this through?"

Sparks stopped what he was doing for a moment, a hard look on his face. "Carmen," he replied, "I don't think he's been living in Radiant City very long. I think he came from somewhere else."

"…What does that have to do with-?"

"If we don't find him and give him help, he is going to die out there."

There was a poignant silence between both parties.

"…Don't do anything reckless, Sparks."

"You know me, Carmen. You know I won't."

The conversation ended as abruptly as it had started and Sparks' badge stopped glowing. He immediately resumed his search by calling out Ziggy's name again. The sun was already disappearing behind the horizon, casting long shadows across the streets. Sparks passed a few alleyways as he went, but they were all cloaked in complete darkness already. The light from his badge could only illuminate so much.

Sparks knew this was a fool's errand. He knew there was a very small chance of success, considering how big and how populated the city was. However, he also knew that this was something he just couldn't ignore. If he couldn't find Ziggy tonight, he was going to try again tomorrow.

After ten more minutes of searching, however, Sparks heard a commotion. It was coming from around the corner, down a very small side street, and it sounded like somebody yelling angrily. A sense of déjà vu overcame Sparks as he followed the voice, hoping that it didn't have anything to do with Ziggy.

When Sparks rounded the corner, he found the street completely empty aside from two Pokémon. One was a Clefable, slightly taller than he was, who was red-faced and furious. There was a simple purse hanging off of her forelimb. The other, to Sparks' dismay, was the Pokémon he had been looking for. Ziggy was cowering on the ground, curling up and trying to make himself as small as possible, while the Clefable was unleashing a rage-filled onslaught of harsh words, slaps and kicks.

Sparks immediately leapt into action when he saw the physical abuse taking place. "Hey! Stop that! Stop what you're doing!" He started to dash towards them.

The Clefable either did not hear him, or chose to ignore him, and continued shouting and swearing at the poor Buizel.

It took two seconds for Sparks to reach them and he quickly shoved himself between the two parties. "The hell do you think you're doing?!" he exclaimed, "Stop!" He reached out and grabbed both of the Clefable's forearms and gave her a forceful shove back.

Finally, the Clefable's attention was on him. "And who the hell do you think _you_ are?!" she spat indignantly. She immediately tried to push past him to get at Ziggy.

"Stop right now and back off!" Sparks barked in an authoritative voice. He gave her another push to try and create some distance, and then adopted a defensive stance in front of Ziggy. "Leave him alone!"

At first the Clefable looked furious, but then her eyes darted down to the badge on his chest. Her eyebrows shot up and she said, "Oh, you're from the Society! Well good! Arrest this troublemaker!"

Sparks could only blink in confusion. "…Excuse me?" he asked. Not only was this not a response he expected, but RSGA's didn't even have the power to arrest anybody. They were helpful and had a bit of authority within the city, but they weren't police officers.

"This dirty freak tried to assault me!" the Clefable practically screeched, pointing a claw accusingly at Ziggy, "I was minding my own business when he stepped in front of me and tried to take a swipe at me!"

Shock and confusion etched themselves across Sparks' expression. He glanced over his shoulder at the Buizel still cowering on the ground behind him. He felt a brief flash of disappointment when he saw that Ziggy was covered in mud again, although one of his forelimbs was uncovered and the golden fur on it was plainly visible. Ziggy looked beyond petrified, though thankfully he didn't look injured. When he locked eyes with Sparks, all he could do was tremblingly shake his head.

Sparks turned back to the Clefable, who was now giving him an impatient look. "You'll have to forgive me if I don't believe you," Sparks said flatly, "Even so, if he _did_ try to take a swipe at you, that's still no reason to violently attack him with punches and kicks. As far as I'm concerned, I arrived to see a much bigger, much stronger Pokémon viciously assaulting my friend."

The Clefable's eyes practically bugged out. "Your _friend_?!"

"Yes, 'my friend'. Now unless you have a more specific and more believable reason for why you attacked my friend, I suggest you remove yourself from the situation before I contact the police and have _you_ arrested for assault."

"So you're not going to _do_ anything about that _freak_?!" the Clefable screeched, "He just jumped out of nowhere like a crazy Pokémon. Tried to steal my purse!"

"Not unless you calm down."

"This is ridiculous!" she spat, and then started to approach. "Get out of my way." She then tried to shove past Sparks, her paws reaching back towards Ziggy.

"Hey!" Sparks quickly deflected her and took a step back, "Back off!"

"Why are you taking _his_ side?!"

"Back off or I call the police."

"Good!" she shouted, "I want them here, but not before I deal with him myself."

Sparks defensively waved her off before she even got close this time.

"Are _you_ lookin' for an ass-whooping too?!" she shouted at Sparks, "'Cus I'll happily give you one! You'll see what happens when Pokémon get in my way!" The furious Clefable then flexed her forearms a bit and growled aggressively at Sparks.

"…I'm warning you," Sparks said in a tense voice. He backed up one more step and felt his paw brush against the muddy Buizel. The Clefable wasn't intimidated by him at all and was continuing to aggressively gesture towards him. Sparks wasn't sure exactly what her problem was, but she was beyond the point of reason by now. At this point, she was just looking for a fight.

Sparks tensed up as she took a step forward. Sweat ran down his forehead as he stared up at the belligerent Clefable. Things were about to get physical. There was going to be a fight, one way or another. Sparks knew that if he didn't fight back, Ziggy was going to get badly hurt. His heart started to hammer against his chest, and his breath quickened.

"Last warning."

The Clefable, unfazed, suddenly took a step forward and wound her arm back for a punch. Sparks ducked under the easily telegraphed move and then immediately pounced straight into the Clefable's stomach. He tackled her to the ground, despite her larger size. Then, before she could even react, literal sparks erupted from his cheeks and he unleashed an electrical attack on his foe.

"Nggah…!" the Clefable groaned as the powerful but harmless Thunder Wave assaulted her. Within seconds, total paralysis had taken over her body. The electrical flash died down, returning the small street to its dimly-lit state, and suddenly everything fell quiet. Sparks waited a few moments just to make sure she wouldn't get up, but she didn't move. She was so paralyzed that she couldn't even speak.

Sparks let out a huge sigh and got up off of her. He immediately tapped on his badge. A moment later, a robotic monotone voice emitted from it. "Radiant City Police Department. Good evening, RSGA."

"Good evening, officer," Sparks replied, "Encountered subject on Amethyst Avenue physically assaulting another Pokémon. Subject became belligerent and threatened to attack myself, so subject was subdued. Requesting arresting party."

"Understood. Please remain with subject. Thank you, RSGA."

The badge dimmed, and the conversation ended. The Rescue Society had always had a close connection with the police, and the two organizations often helped one another out. Each RSGA badge was equipped with a way to contact the police department directly. The Society often encountered criminals in one way or another, so this was infinitely useful to both parties.

Sparks took in a long, slow breath through his nose and calmly exhaled through his mouth. Then he remembered what he had been doing in the first place, and turned around. Ziggy was still cowering on the ground in the same spot, but was now looking at him with wide, awe-struck eyes. Sparks made his way over to the Buizel. "Hey, you all right?"

In a flash, Ziggy tackled him into a tight hug and started to cry. Sparks was briefly caught off guard by this, and then hugged the Buizel back comfortingly. He didn't even mind that Ziggy was getting mud all over him. The important thing was that he was safe.

"S-S-Sparks…!" Ziggy cried. He was trembling like a leaf, sobbing as if a dam had been broken.

"It's okay, Ziggy. It's over now. She can't hurt you anymore."

"You…Y-you came back for me…!"

"Yeah, buddy. I knew I couldn't leave you alone out here."

Ziggy sniffled and hugged him tighter. "I…I didn't do it! Please believe me, Sparks! I didn't do anything she said!"

"I believe you," Sparks said without hesitation, "Why don't you calm down and tell me what really happened?"

"I…" Ziggy whined a little. "I…I was in the alley over there. I was tryin' to hide…I saw a barrel in the alley and I thought it might've had berries or something in it, but when I reached in…it was full of water. It washed all the mud off of my forelimb… I…I-I panicked and I tried to run out so I could go back and get more mud, but she was there and I almost ran into her. I _almost_ ran into her, Sparks. I didn't even run into her! I missed!"

Ziggy was still trembling just as much as he continued to speak. "She…She took…_one_ look at my forelimb…and started screaming that I was attacking her…She started to hit me…I-I-I was too scared to even defend myself…I-I didn't hit her, Sparks! I didn't try to steal her purse!"

Sparks sighed and shook his head. As unfortunate as it was, Ziggy's story wasn't all that farfetched. No matter how many good Pokémon there were in the world, there will always be those who are just awful for no reason. This was just a typical case of chromaphobia. Sparks could tell just by the way Ziggy was speaking that he was telling the truth.

The Buizel then buried his muddy head into Sparks' chest fur and cried some more. "I'm sorry…! Sparks, I'm sorry!"

"Sorry for what?" Sparks replied gently.

"I'm sorry I ran away! I…I got scared! I'm sorry, Sparks! Please take me back! P-please, please let me come back! I…I…" Ziggy took in a strained breath as a powerful shiver wracked his whole body. "I don't want to live like this anymore…! I can't take it anymore! I can't do this…Please take me back…"

Sparks patted Ziggy on the back comfortingly and said, "Of course you can come back, Ziggy. Why do you think I came out here looking for you?"

Ziggy turned his head up and looked at Sparks with his muddy face. "R…Really? You really mean it?"

"That's not something I would ever lie about. You can come back. We can still give you the help you need."

Tears welled up in the Buizel's eyes, and then he started wailing anew. "Thank you… Th-thank you, Sparks…! I…I don't…" He sniffled. "You're so nice to me…You're the first Pokémon who's ever _ever_ been this nice to me."

Sparks frowned and said, "Aw, c'mon now. That can't be true. There's a lot of Pokémon out there. I'm sure _somebody_ must've been nice to you at some point."

But, to the Raichu's dismay, Ziggy simply shook his head. "You're the first Pokémon I've ever met in my whole life who's…been nice to me. I-I didn't know how to…I got scared. Nobody's ever _really_ tried to h-help me before…"

"Well…" Sparks said, slightly at a loss for words, "That's…really unfortunate to hear. I'm sorry you've had to go through that, but…I am glad to hear that you want to come back. Although, I have to ask, Ziggy. Why did you run away?"

Ziggy looked up at him with big, cub-like eyes. "You…left the room," he started to explain in a shaky voice, "I was s-scared, but I waited…Then the door opened again. Someone came in. I-It was a Vulpix and a Sableye…"

Sparks nodded. The Vulpix must've been one of their members, Lupe, but there were no Sableye working at the Society. That meant that the Sableye was likely a client that Lupe was working with.

"The Vulpix…s-seemed nice, I guess…" Ziggy continued, "b-but the Sableye kept staring at me. The Vulpix said sorry for bothering me and led the Sableye into the same door you went out." Ziggy sniffled and bit his lip before saying one last thing. "Just…just before the door shut…I heard the Sableye say something. He…He said…'I didn't think _freaks_ were allowed back here.'"

In a split second, Sparks' heart sank down to the pit of his stomach. "Oh no…"

"I got upset…a-and scared…and I was just thinking that nothing you'd said was true, and my fur colour was going to be a problem after all, a-and…"

"Ziggy," Sparks firmly interrupted, "That Sableye doesn't work for us. There's no Sableye on our team."

"H-huh…?"

"Whoever that Sableye was, he was getting help from the Society. Just like you. He's a client. I'm really sorry you had to hear that, but his views don't reflect those of the Society. I don't have a problem with you being a shiny. _Nobody_ in the Society does. We've worked with shiny Pokémon before. I promise you, with all my heart, it's not a problem."

Ziggy blinked a few times, and then hung his head a little. "I suppose on some level…I knew that. I was just so scared at the moment…I thought nobody wanted me…Just like always. Just like every time in the past." He was starting to tear up again. "Just like always! I thought I'd let myself get fooled again!"

Sparks sighed, feeling yet another dagger in his heart. He strongly hoped that Lupe had given the Sableye a stern talking to. Client or not, hurtful words like that were not tolerated within the walls of the Society. Sparks was kicking himself for leaving Ziggy alone in that room to talk to Carmen. He had seen how much of a fragile state the Buizel had been in, but had foolishly thought it would all be okay for just a few minutes.

"I'm sorry, buddy," he said, giving the Buizel a quick hug, "I know a lot's happened, and you and I probably have a lot to talk about, but…" Sparks glanced over his shoulder, seeing the Clefable was still lying on the ground paralyzed. They were standing far enough away that she wouldn't be able to hear them. "The police are going to be here pretty soon," Sparks said to Ziggy, "and, call me crazy, but I get the feeling you don't wanna talk to the police."

He turned back to Ziggy and was greeted with a wide-eyed petrified expression. Ziggy hurriedly shook his head.

"Okay," Sparks said with a nod, "Here's what we're gonna do. I have to stick around and talk to the police about what happened. You're gonna hide somewhere nearby until I'm done. I'll just tell the police that she attacked you, but you ran away after I subdued her. Okay?" He then took a look around and soon spotted a pile of discarded cardboard boxes nearby. "Hide under one of those," Sparks said and pointed them out.

"Uhh…S-sure…" Ziggy replied with a hint of nervousness in his voice, "Sure, I can do that."

"Good. It's gonna be okay, buddy. I'm gonna make things okay, but you have to trust me."

Ziggy hung his head and nodded. "Thank you…" he whispered.

* * *

The rest of the proceedings had gone off without a hitch. The police had arrived and promptly arrested the Clefable thanks to Sparks' testimony. Due to his long tenure serving the Society, he had built up a very respectable level of trust with the police force. It turned out that this was not the Clefable's first offense. She had a documented case of anger management issues.

Once the police left with the Clefable in tow, Sparks went back over to the cardboard box and found Ziggy hiding patiently underneath it. By this time, night had fallen, and this turned out to be a benefit in disguise. Ziggy didn't mind walking to the Society building in the dark, since the low light meant fewer Pokémon could see him very well and most wouldn't pay attention to him.

Even so, Ziggy looked weary for the entire walk there. Sparks had asked him multiple times if he had any injuries from the fight, but Ziggy was adamant that he didn't. He was just bruised and exhausted. By the time they reached the Society, Ziggy looked like he was ready to pass out.

Sparks brought him into the building again and led him right into the alumni dorms. Ziggy was brought to one of the shared bathrooms, where Sparks let him take a quick shower to get the mud off. Ziggy still looked nervous and hesitant to remove the mud, but he did it anyway.

While Ziggy was showering, Sparks had contacted Carmen and she showed up outside the bathroom a few minutes later. Sparks was grateful to hear that Carmen had decided to allow Ziggy to sleep in the alumni dorms, though she had strongly insisted to Sparks that he keep an eye on the Buizel, just in case. Once Ziggy was all cleaned up, Carmen led him to his room. Ziggy was still quite nervous around the Braixen, but seemed okay since Sparks was nearby.

As his lodging had been decided last-minute, the room wasn't furnished with anything yet. Carmen had gathered a bunch of blankets and pillows to make a makeshift bed for Ziggy until they could get something better set up tomorrow. Sparks winced at the haphazard setup, but Ziggy seemed quite enamoured by it. He had walked over, examined it for a couple minutes, and then happily crawled under the blankets. He had rested his head on the pillow, looking like he was seconds away from slumber. Sparks had promised him that they would talk some more in the morning, and also informed Ziggy that his room was right next door. "Come get me if you need anything. Doesn't matter what time it is," he had said.

Now, at long last, Sparks was given a chance to relax. He was busying himself with a mop and bucket, cleaning up the muddy pawprints Ziggy had left all over the floor. Sparks didn't mind a little dirty work, though. The point was that Ziggy was now safely sheltered within their walls. Carmen was helping him out.

"Boy, oh boy…" Sparks remarked, "What a day…"

"Do you think he'll be okay in there?" Carmen asked him, "I don't want him to panic again and try to dig his way out, or something."

"I think he's too tired to panic again. He went through a lot today… Don't worry, I'll make sure to wake up before he does."

Carmen nodded. "It's a good thing you went after him, it seems. I should have known better than to doubt your gut. It's always led you right."

Sparks was silent for a moment as he focused on his work.

"Let me ask you this," Carmen then spoke up, "What do you plan to do with him?"

"I'm not 100% sure about that just yet," Sparks replied, "For now, the important thing is to give him a few good meals, make sure he's not sick, give him a place to stay that isn't a dirty alleyway. Then, I suppose, the idea is to try and convince him that the whole world isn't out to get him."

Carmen glanced away with a grim look.

"I've seen shinies get mistreated," Sparks continued, "but he is legitimately afraid to reveal to anybody that he is a shiny. He's hid himself away from society as a whole…"

"Mhm…" Carmen agreed regretfully.

"My hope is that he can make friends with the Pokémon in our guild. None of us here will care that he's a shiny. Maybe if he can make friends with some of our alumni, that will help bring him out of his shell. Then, who knows?" Sparks sighed, and then added, "I just hope a month is enough."

"It'll have to be. You know he can't stay longer than that."

"I know, I know…"

After a few more minutes of silent scrubbing and cleaning, Carmen spoke up again. "He said that he's been on the streets his whole life?"

"That's what he said." When Carmen didn't say anything else, Sparks turned to look at her. She had a troubled expression. "Why?"

"Are you sure about that?"

"What?" Sparks tilted his head. "Why not?"

"He seems…well-spoken for somebody who's been on the streets his whole life."

"Well-spoken…?" Sparks echoed, and then gave it some thought. He honestly hadn't really been paying attention to that sort of thing. "I dunno, he probably learned how to talk at some point. He didn't really give me a detailed answer about his past. He might've had parents when he was really young, or he just picked stuff up along the way."

"I suppose," Carmen replied with a nod.

"We won't know anything for sure until I talk to him again tomorrow. I might miss the morning briefing by the way. I don't want to miss him waking up and have him panic."

"That's fine. He's your assignment now, anyway."

"I hope Danika can manage without me."

"Oh, she'll be fine. She just grabbed you because you were free."

The two lapsed into silence once more, and a few minutes passed. By this point, they had almost finished cleaning up all of the mud.

"I hope we can help him…" Sparks remarked.

"I do too, Sparks. He really did look like a very frightened Pokémon."

"I hate seeing Pokémon living on the streets, but…He looked like he honestly couldn't handle it. Poor kid…"

"Tomorrow's a new day, Sparksy boy. You've been working here long enough to know that you have to take things one day at a time."

Sparks snickered. "I've been working here longer than you, and you're giving me 'sage' advice? Why aren't I guildmaster again?"

"Politics," Carmen replied in a joking tone.

"Ugh, my favourite…"

The two laughed, happy to be in each other's company while they worked together to tackle this chore. Sparks, however, knew he might have a much bigger chore once the morning arrived…


	5. Good Morning

Chapter 5 \- **Good Morning**

Ziggy awoke with a startled gasp.

Panic gripped him for a moment as the last remnants of his frightening dream twisted his perception of reality. He didn't know where he was or what had happened. He was in an unfamiliar place. Something _bad_ was happening!

After wildly wrestling with the 'evil creature' that was trying to suffocate him, he eventually came to the realization that it was, in fact, a blanket. His heart hammered in his chest as he looked around, trying to understand the world around him. A fairly plain, featureless room was what greeted him. He was surrounded by the wood paneling of blank walls and a complete lack of furniture.

It took him a moment to latch onto the surprising fact that he was _indoors_.

Again, panic choked him in a vice grip for a moment, until finally his memories of the past day came back to him. He remembered Sparks, and the incident with the Clefable. He remembered that this was the room he had fallen asleep in; a room within the building for the 'Society'.

Ziggy took a moment to glance at his surroundings again, and then examined himself. He was unscathed. He had been almost positive that he was going to wake up in chains, or with his fur burned off, or any number of horrible possibilities. Instead, it looked as if nothing had happened during the night. Nothing at all.

It really _had_ been a safe place to spend the night.

Ziggy then glanced over his shoulder, looking back at the one wall he hadn't examined yet. That was where the room's door was located, and it was currently shut tightly. There was also something white sitting at the base of the door.

The Buizel slowly got up and carefully inched his way over to the door. He picked up the object, seeing that it was a sheet of paper with something paw-written on it. Ziggy sat there for a minute and studied the note. Reading wasn't exactly his strong suit. It just took him a bit longer than others.

It read, '_Good morning, Ziggy. Hope you slept well. I know a lot has happened lately and you still might be a bit nervous about things. I'd like to talk to you alone in this room, where nobody else will bother us. Take your time waking up. When you're ready, just knock on the door. ~Sparks_'

* * *

A few minutes earlier…

* * *

"Is that the Buizel's room?"

Sparks' ears perked at the sound of the newcomer, and turned to see that Kona was approaching him. The Dewott wore an inquisitive look.

"Yes," Sparks replied in a quiet voice. The rooms were somewhat soundproof, but he still didn't want to risk waking Ziggy up. "I'm gonna have a chat with him when he wakes up."

"Is he okay?" Kona asked, likely referring to everything that had happened yesterday.

"I…don't know for sure," Sparks admitted, "He's very easily frightened around other Pokémon."

"Yeah, I definitely noticed that…"

"Hopefully I'll be able to get him out of his room some time today, and I can introduce him to everybody here."

Kona nodded. "He did seem nice, despite his panic. Well, I gotta go. The request board is callin' my name. I was just grabbing something from my room."

"All right. Good luck out there, bud."

Sparks watched idly as Kona ducked into his room, which was across the hall from his own, and then headed back out the door with a shoulder-strap satchel. Memories of Sparks' earlier days in the guild resurfaced, making him feel nostalgic for a moment. He had joined the Rescue Society only a few days after evolving into a Pikachu, back when he was still very young, and had been with them ever since. Decades had passed since he had first joined, and life had thrown many wild things at him along the way.

He idly wondered what sort of 'thing' life was trying to throw at him with Ziggy.

Speak of the devil, Sparks' ears perked up. He had just _barely_ heard a very quiet knocking coming from the door he was standing next to. It appeared that his guest was awake. "Ziggy?" he called through the door, "You up? Can I come in? Knock again if I can come in." After a noticeable pause, there came another couple of knocks on the door. Sparks leaned forward and presented his badge to the door, causing the former to glow and the latter to unlock. Usually only the room's owner and the guildmaster could unlock dorm room doors, but any badge could unlock an unclaimed room such as this.

Sparks slowly swung the door inward and caught a glimpse of Ziggy darting back in fright. The two locked eyes and Ziggy seemed to relax just a little bit. Sparks smiled warmly and said, "Good morning!"

"…M…Mornin'…" Ziggy Mareepishly replied.

"How'd you sleep?"

"Um…Good, actually…"

Sparks nodded, remaining in the doorframe. "Hungry?" he asked.

Ziggy practically inflated like a balloon just from that one, single word.

"Heh," Sparks chuckled, "Liz already made you some breakfast. Would you like me to bring it here?"

The Buizel glanced around a bit, and then nodded demurely.

"Be right back!"

Sparks closed the door again, and then headed back towards the common room. Sitting on the table nearby was a plate holding a croissant, a Nanab berry and a few slices of Oran berry. It was a small but simple breakfast that didn't need to be kept warm, and next to it was note requesting that nobody else touch it. Sparks picked it up and brought it back to the room. He knocked on the door to signify his presence and then opened it with his badge again.

Ziggy was sitting on his collection of blankets and pillows in the middle of the room, and his eyes grew quite large when he saw the food Sparks was carrying. Sparks handed it to him and sat down on the floor a respectable distance away. "There you go. Dig in! That's just to start you off. Later, Liz can make you a warm meal for brunch."

The Buizel took one cursory look at Sparks, just to make absolutely sure it was okay to eat the food, and then picked up the croissant. He practically started weeping after taking a bite. After he swallowed, an inquisitive look appeared on his face and he asked, "…What's 'brunch'?"

Sparks held back a snicker, not wanting to offend him. "It's a meal between breakfast and lunch. Or, in your case, just an excuse to eat a hot breakfast meal even though it won't be breakfast. It's just semantics."

Ziggy had gone wide-eyed at the concept of an extra meal in the day, but Sparks' last word had left him looking confused.

"More food is coming later," he simplified.

"Y-yeah? Okay…!" Ziggy then went back to finishing his croissant. Just like yesterday, he ate quite hungrily. It was easy to see his malnutrition just in the way that he ate. Sparks would have to make sure Liz didn't skimp on the eats later.

Once he had eaten all but a few slices of Oran, Sparks decided to reignite the conversation. "How're you feeling? Still no injuries or anything?"

Ziggy shook his head. "I'm okay…"

"I just wanted to, again, apologize for the behaviour of one of our clients in your presence. And…I also wanted to apologize for leaving you alone in that room. That was just a dumb move on my part," Sparks said remorsefully.

The room fell silent for a few moments. Ziggy swallowed his last bites of food, and then looked up at Sparks with a sort of melancholy look. He then took another look at his surroundings. "Um…" he spoke up in a very soft voice, "Th…Thanks for…letting me come back."

"You're welcome! But don't just thank me. Carmen's the one who decided to let you have this room. During your stay here, I'll be right next door to you. And don't worry, we're gonna get it furnished today. You'll have an actual bed by tonight!"

For a moment, Ziggy just looked up at him. His eyes were again big and wide, and Sparks could see immense gratitude in them. He still wore a frown, though. "I…R-really…?" he muttered, "I...don't know what to say…"

"You don't have to say anything, buddy."

"This is so much…Y-you're so nice to me…I really don't know what I did…to deserve all of this kindness…"

Now it was Sparks' turn to frown. "You don't have to 'do' something to deserve kindness, Ziggy. Kindness is what our organization's about, remember? We just want to help you out, and see you towards a life off of the street."

A cloud of pessimism washed over him. "That's…really nice of you to say, but…I don't think it's gonna happen."

"What? Why not?" Sparks paused for a minute, a troubled look on his face. "Hasn't anybody tried to help you before? Even just a little bit? Maybe someone gave you a few Poké, or a free piece of bread?"

To Sparks' shock, Ziggy just shook his head.

"I…can't fathom something like that. Why? Just…why?"

"Because I'm a freak," Ziggy replied depressingly, "I'm just a freak to everybody. No-one wants to help me. No-one wants anything to do with me."

"Hey," Sparks interjected, giving Ziggy a serious look, "I don't ever want to hear you call yourself a freak, okay? Alternately coloured Pokémon are not freaks, they're just different. It's bad enough if others have called you that, but I'm not gonna sit here and let you call yourself a freak."

Ziggy just gave him a look that said he didn't share the Raichu's enthusiasm.

"I guess…you really haven't been treated very well in the past?" Sparks asked, a bit of a sobering tone to his voice.

Distress immediately appeared in Ziggy's expression and he glanced away.

"That's why you wear the mud…and why you steal food and hide away from everybody in the alleys?"

Ziggy just nodded.

"…What about your parents?" Sparks asked.

"I never had parents," Ziggy replied flatly, "They were gone before I ever knew them."

Sparks frowned even more, heartbroken. It was bad enough to hear that something had taken Ziggy's parents away so early in his life. What made it worse was the complete lack of grief in Ziggy's voice. There wasn't a trace of sorrow. Ziggy wasn't upset that he had lost his parents, because he had never known them in the first place.

"Ziggy…I'm so sorry to hear that."

Ziggy let out a heavy sigh. He was starting to retreat back into his shell already.

"So…even if circumstances were better, you would have nowhere to go?"

The Buizel numbly shook his head.

"Well, hey," Sparks said, trying to cheer him up, "It's our mission to change that. I don't mean to brag, but we have a very high success rate."

Ziggy lifted his gaze and looked up at the Raichu. There was a bit less sadness and a bit more curiosity in his eyes.

"So, listen," Sparks continued, "We have to get out of this room, because some of our guildmembers are coming by pretty soon to set it up for you. Y'know, bed and such?" When Ziggy started looking a bit nervous about the prospect of leaving his room, Sparks said, "Do you feel okay going to hang out in the common room with me? Or do you wanna keep things low-key for a bit longer?"

"Well, um…" Ziggy murmured. He said nothing more, but his answer was clear.

"That's okay. We can go hang out in my room. Is that okay with you?"

"Uhh…" Ziggy pondered the question for a moment. "I, uh…I guess so."

"Great!"

So, the two got up and made their way to the room next door. Sparks noticed how Ziggy carefully looked to make sure the hallway was empty before crossing the extremely short distance between the rooms. Either way, they were soon enough in his room.

Sparks saw Ziggy looking at his surroundings. His room was a bit of a mess, to be quite honest. There were papers and other work-related junk lying about wherever it had fallen, and a writing desk that was not organized even a little bit. It was lit up by a single table lamp. On the far wall was a small bookshelf. Sparks liked to read, but he was quick to admit that his tastes were very particular and not many books could grab his interest. On the walls were a few photographs of memorable points in his life; some with his family, and some with past clients. Finally was his bed, which wasn't made. Sparks didn't believe in making beds. It was just going to get messed up as soon as you went to sleep in it anyway.

Sparks sat on the carpeted floor and indicated for Ziggy to do the same, but saw that Ziggy seemed to paying a lot of attention to some of the pictures framed on his wall. "Those are some of the Pokémon I've helped," he explained.

"Really…?"

"Yeah! Right there in front of you, that's a little orphaned Smoochum and the family I found who were willing to take her in. Up there, you've got the Pokéathlon team I stepped in to coach when the actual coach broke his leg. There's the Leafeon I saved from a burning building, and there's me and Carmen standing next to a young Poochyena who…was standing on the Radiant City Bridge…ready to jump."

Ziggy turned and looked back at him in shock.

"That's why I do what I do," Sparks said, "That little Poochyena is now a Mightyena, and he's now a police officer in a small town."

"Wow…" Ziggy breathed softly, "There's…a lot of pictures here…"

"These are just the ones that had a great impact on my life. The ones I stay in touch with. But, there's also some pictures of my family. Right there to your left, that's my dumb brother." He snickered after the last sentence, but then his laughter died away. Sparks bit his lip, hoping he hadn't hit a sore spot.

Ziggy didn't seem offended, and finally came over to sit down on the ground across from him.

"Sorry, I don't mean to brag or anything," Sparks apologized, "but I figured we've been talking about you for quite a while now. Is there anything you'd like to know about me? Or maybe about the Society?"

"Uhm…" Ziggy murmured, appearing as if he had been put on the spot suddenly, "I…I dunno…"

"Go ahead. You can ask anything you want."

Ziggy fidgeted on the spot for a minute, and Sparks figured that he was unused to being in the spotlight even in a one-on-one conversation. He briefly glanced back at the pictures on the wall, and then asked, "What did you save the…sports team from?"

"Hm?" Sparks tilted his head. "Save them?"

"Did you…rescue them from something?"

A few seconds passed with Sparks just blinking, a blank look on his face. Then, the torch in his brain lit up. "Ohhh!" he quietly exclaimed, "Oh, 'The _Rescue_ Society'! Oh, I see what you mean." He then shook his head and chuckled softly. "No, that's just our name. It's not…exactly our 'mission statement', per se. Although, I guess you could say it fits sort of abstractly. We rescue those who are in need of help, but it's not like they're all trapped in burning buildings or lost in dungeons."

"Oh…"

"It's actually a historical name," Sparks continued to explain, "You see…back when the lands were still being discovered and explored and colonized, there were still plenty of dangerous places where unknown dangers lurked. Thus, 'Rescue Teams' started to form so they could go and rescue Pokémon who got lost in a forest or trapped in a cave. Then later came the Exploration Teams, and the Dungeoneering Teams, and such and such. When most of the world's guilds unified into a single organization, the name we chose harkened back to those original 'Rescue Teams' who started it all. The world is a different place now, more modern and mapped-out, but Pokémon still need help so we're still around."

Ziggy blinked a few times. "Huh…" he commented, "C-cool…You seem to know this stuff."

"Heh…I oughta. I've been working here for more than 30 years."

Ziggy's eyes nearly popped right out of his skull. "_30_ years…?!"

"Uh huh," Sparks said with a nod, "Carmen is the guildmaster, but I'm the 'senior alumnus', meaning I've been here the longest."

"Oh gosh…"

"Yeah, a lot's happened in those 30 years…" Sparks sighed nostalgically. "I used to be out there in the field every day, just like the rest of the active team like Kona and Terry. Taking requests, answering calls to action, working with clients. I rose to quite a high rank, which meant that I was allowed to pursue tasks that were a bit more dangerous.

"But, ah…" Sparks trailed off for a moment. "Things changed. Technically speaking, I am no longer the same sort of alumnus that the others are. I don't take requests or do very many missions these days, rather just the stuff Carmen assigns me. I spend more of my time here in the headquarters." He sighed again. "A part of me misses those days, but I always remember that in cases where I can't be of help, there's always more than one Pokémon working here who can."

Ziggy was looking up at him like a cub listening to a story being told, and it made Sparks chuckle a little. "I wasn't even on duty when I found you. _Both_ times, actually. But, well, it's hard to turn that switch in my brain off. Someone needs help, and I gotta try."

"Mhm…" Ziggy glanced away for a moment. "Th…Thank you, again…"

"Not a problem, buddy. Not a problem at all."

"I was…actually glad when you came back the second time…and then the third time…"

Sparks studied the Buizel for a moment, recalling a thought he'd had earlier. "Ziggy," he said, "Have you always lived in Radiant City?"

Ziggy glanced back at him and then shook his head.

"I had a feeling," Sparks remarked.

"I…Well, I _think_ I was born in a place called Dewdrop Town, or something like that..."

Sparks furrowed his brow as he tried to think of the town in question. He was sure he had heard the name before, but was having trouble putting his paw on it.

"I only have a few fuzzy memories of there, so I think I lived there when I was very young," Ziggy continued, "And then I went and lived on the streets of Sunshine Village. That's where I lived for most of my life."

Sunshine Village was a place that Sparks had actually been to a few times, mostly when he had been a Pikachu and was working on assignments. It was a bit of a larger village, but still quite small and very peaceful. "On the streets?" Sparks asked.

Ziggy nodded. "I lived in the shadows there and stole just enough food every day so I wouldn't starve," he said, sadness creeping into his voice, "It was a hard life, but I could manage. I got good enough at sneaking food away that I could do it really easily, and I never stole from the same Pokémon more than once in a week…"

Sparks simply kept a soft expression and nodded. He had already committed to forgiving Ziggy for his life of theft and wasn't going to change that now.

"But then…" Ziggy said as his expression soured, "Well, Pokémon started catching onto me. Just…y'know, over time they started to notice me. Soon everybody in the village knew about the 'muddy thief', and they started to band together so they could…c-catch me.

"One day…I realized I had to go. Something bad was going to happen if I stuck around, so…" Ziggy swallowed a lump and adopted a grim expression. "I waited for the next delivery wagon to come to town and snuck on board. I decided, wherever the wagon took me…that would be my new home."

A sobering look appeared in Sparks' expression. "And it took you to Radiant City."

Ziggy nodded sadly. "I didn't expect it. It's such a…_big_ city… I was scared, but I thought maybe…just maybe…something good would happen here. I could somehow catch my big break in a city like this. Find a job, or a place to live…?"

The Buizel then shut his eyes, a couple tears rolling down his cheeks. "It was too much…" he bemoaned, "Too big. Too many Pokémon. Everything I did was ten times harder. I…I just…j-just couldn't…"

"Hey, buddy, don't cry," Sparks said reassuringly, "It's okay now." He sighed internally, though. It was as he had expected. Ziggy had been quickly overwhelmed by the big city streets of Radiant City. He was more relieved now than ever that he had managed to get Ziggy off of the streets for the time being.

"I've only been here about a month…" Ziggy spoke, "I'm…not sure how much longer I would've…"

"Well, those days are behind you now," Sparks said, trying to steer the conversation back to something a little more positive, "You're here now, and when you eventually leave here, it's _not_ going to be back onto the streets. We're gonna do everything we can to help."

"Mmm…" Ziggy murmured.

Sparks looked at the poor Buizel. He looked truly defeated. Sparks couldn't help but think that, even though Ziggy had found a touch of salvation and was off the streets now, he still felt a bit like he had failed somehow. Ziggy certainly didn't seem optimistic about his future, in any case.

"Want your brunch now?"

As expected, Ziggy's attention was immediately earned. "Huh? Now…?"

Sparks shrugged and chuckled. "If you want. It's almost 11 o'clock, I think."

"Uhh….Okay…"

"I'll ask Liz to bring it in here for today, okay? We'll eat at the dining table next time."

Ziggy glowered a little bit at that notion, but then nodded.

"What would you like? Liz can cook just about anything."

It was as if the Buizel's brain overloaded for a moment. Ziggy looked as if he was contemplating a completely alien notion. Sparks got the impression that Ziggy had never before had a _choice_ as to what he could have to eat. "I…uhhh…" He spent a couple of seconds just staring ahead blankly, the gears in his head turning. Eventually, though, he just looked up at Sparks with a lost look in his eyes.

"Heh…" Sparks remarked, "Just about anything would be good, huh?"

"Um…Y-yeah, I guess. Uhh…" He paused for a moment. "What, um…What would…_you_ suggest…?"

Sparks raised his eyebrows. "What I would suggest would be to let her surprise you, if that's what you really want. Liz has this kind of magic touch in the kitchen. Even though she's never met you, she'll bring you something you'll love. I can almost guarantee it." After a pause, he added, "Though, she does make some _killer_ pancakes."

"Pan…cakes…?" Ziggy murmured reverently.

It looked like the Buizel's mind was made up right then and there, and Sparks laughed softly while good-naturedly rolling his eyes. He tapped his badge and said, "Liz? You there?"

After a brief pause, a voice answered. "I'm all ears, honey!" Liz replied in her easily-recognizable country accent.

"Ziggy's ready for his brunch. Bring him whatever you think sounds good, though I should mention that his eyes lit up when I mentioned your pancakes."

There was laughter on the other end. "Comin' right up, sugar pie."

"Thanks so much!"

Sparks ended the call, and then returned his attention to Ziggy, who had been staring at his badge again. "This is gonna be trouble for me. I'm gonna be smelling her delicious food while you eat it, and then I'll have to wait until dinner to have some…"

"Huh…?" Ziggy gave him a look, "You…I don't have to, if…"

"I'm joking, buddy. Well, half joking. It doesn't matter either way. We gotta get some good food in your belly."

Ziggy's stomach growled a second later, as if on cue. He blushed a little in embarrassment. The two then spent a couple of minutes having very light conversation while they waited for the food to arrive. Ziggy wasn't exactly the most talkative guest, but Sparks didn't mind. He was just happy to see that Ziggy was slowly approaching something that was vaguely similar to 'calmness'.

Of course, Ziggy jumped about a metre into the air when there was a sudden knocking on the door. "Roooooom service!" an upbeat voice called out from the other side.

"You're hilarious, Liz," Sparks replied in a droll voice as he stood up. He looked at Ziggy, seeing that his agitated state had returned. "You gonna be okay meeting Liz?" he asked, "She's got a lot of energy, but she's sweet as honey."

Ziggy gulped, his eyes darting between Sparks and the door, but he eventually managed to nod.

Sparks smiled at this, and then opened the door. Standing on the other side, miraculously balancing no less than four plates of food and a glass of juice, was guild chef Liz. The Miltank wore her signature upbeat, larger-than-life smile and her floral pattern apron. "Mornin', sugar!" she greeted Sparks.

"Good morning, Liz," Sparks replied, "Inside voice, okay?" He then stepped to the side and gestured for her to come in.

Liz stepped into the room and looked down at Ziggy, who was still sitting on the floor. "Well howdy, sweet pea!" she said in just a slightly more subdued voice.

Ziggy seemed quite distressed and nervous, quivering a little on the spot, but he wasn't running and hiding. Liz, like most Miltank, had a larger frame and could be intimidating if she looked down on someone. Sparks wondered if it was Ziggy's improving sense of bravery, Liz's award-winning smile, or the fact that she had food that was keeping him from scurrying away.

The little Buizel let out a squeak that vaguely sounded like the word 'hi'.

Liz approached him while still keeping a respectable distance, leaned down, and started expertly placing the dishes of food on the floor in front of him. It was always amazing to see Liz carry food. She had previously worked as a waitress at a high-end restaurant, and it showed. She was always breaking her own record for how many dishes she could hold at once.

It was also amazing to see the fear visibly disappear from Ziggy once there was food in front of him. His eyes locked on to the lightly steaming stack of pancakes slathered with butter, and it was as if nothing else in the world existed.

"There ya go, sug!" Liz said once all the food was placed, "One stack of Liz's _apparently_ world-famous pancakes, ocean-style salad with honey mustard dressin', home-style hash browns with a side-a toast 'n' jam, and some Pecha juice 'cus who could go wrong with somethin' a li'l sweet?"

Ziggy looked like he was about to pass out from overstimulation. He stared reverently at the food for a few moments, his nose twitching as the delicious scent permeated the room. Then he slowly turned to Liz, who was now squatting down so she was closer to his eye level, and softly whispered, "All this…i-is for…me?"

"Absolutely, cutie pie," she replied, "Sparky-boy tells me yer the newest guest in our humble home, an' we treat guests like family here."

"I…" Ziggy started to say, but then trailed off as his gaze returned to the food.

"Ziggy's a little bit scared of other Pokémon," Sparks explained to the Miltank.

"What? Shucks, hun, ya ain't got nothin' to be afraid of here. We're nicer'n a big ol' pile-a fluffy Jumpluff."

Ziggy looked up at Liz again. Though definitely not as bad as his earlier interactions with guild members, he still looked a bit afraid of her. "Um…Thank you…Thanks so much for…all this."

"Sugar, ya gotta relax," Liz said with a compassionate smile, "Nobody here's gonna hurtcha. I mean, Sparky-boy's prob'ly the scariest one here an' you seem like you're already pals with 'im."

"Liz…"

"What…?" Ziggy murmured in confusion.

"Nothing, buddy, don't worry about it," Sparks said, "She is right, though. Even if, heaven forbid, the worst happens and we have to kick you out, even then we wouldn't hurt you. Nobody in the building would."

"Mmm…" Ziggy murmured, unfortunately still not sounding too convinced.

After a brief pause, Liz spoke up. "Anyway, ya can call me Liz. It's nice ta meetcha, Ziggy. You just let me know if there's anythin' there ya don't like, and if ya have any special requests for dinner, well then lay 'em on me."

Ziggy was practically drooling as he stared at the food. It looked like it was taking every fibre of his being to keep from diving in like a rabid Loudred. "H-hi…" he eventually said to Liz, "Ahem…Thanks again…"

"Ah, ya don't get ta thank me until ya start eatin'. I can promise ya, you'll be smilin' by the end." Liz then stood up and moved back to stand beside Sparks. "Ah'll get outta yer fur then. I gotta go anyhow. Now that that's all done, I gotta hit that board out there." She turned to Sparks. "See ya, Sparky-boy. Lemme know if ya need anythin' else."

"Thanks, Liz," Sparks said with a nod, "We appreciate it."

"Bye bye, cutie pie," Liz said as she waved to Ziggy. The Buizel nodded and waved back, saying 'thank you' one more time, and then Liz turned and exited the room.

"Well, I think that went well," Sparks commented, "Y'see? We're all nice and friendly here. Maybe later in the day we can go out and meet the rest of the gang?"

Ziggy looked up at Sparks, as if silently asking for permission to start eating. Sparks just chuckled and nodded. When Ziggy turned back to the large array of food, it was as if he didn't know where to begin. Eventually he decided to try the pancakes first. He picked up the knife and fork that Liz had provided and started to cut a few pieces off.

Sparks noticed how Ziggy held the silverware. They were a bit unwieldy in his paws, showing that he didn't have much experience using them in the first place. He did manage to use them, but it was an awkward process.

The Raichu smiled as he watched Ziggy's eyes light up with fireworks when he took a bite of the pancakes. "Dear heavens…" Ziggy murmured reverently.

"Toldja they were good!"

* * *

Sparks ended up hanging out in his room with Ziggy for quite a number of hours. The day passed by outside, but Sparks didn't mind. Every minute spent with Ziggy was spent working at chipping away at the Buizel's walls of anxiety and fear. Ziggy's mood had improved greatly after he had eaten Liz's brunch, although Sparks' heart had ached when he heard Ziggy remark that it was the first time he had ever felt full.

Ziggy wasn't exactly very talkative, and Sparks just spent time with him so that he could eventually feel comfortable in the presence of somebody else. Though Ziggy wasn't really afraid of him anymore, he still acted like he didn't know what to do with himself. He had been alone for so much of his life without a single Pokémon to call a friend, so this was all new and confusing to him.

In actuality, their conversation had mostly geared towards the stuff that was in Sparks' room. His desk and shelves were full of knickknacks he had picked up here and there, and he was more than happy to tell a few tales.

Eventually, the clock hit six in the evening and the sun started to set. Six o'clock was around the time when most of the others returned to the headquarters if they were off in the field, since dinner was served at seven. Sparks had been idly wondering if he was going to be able to join the others for dinner, but his thoughts were interrupted by a soft knock at the door.

Ziggy's head darted towards the door immediately, and Sparks saw a wave of fear wash over him. He stayed sitting where he was, though, and simply shot Sparks a quick look. Sparks could tell he was silently asking him to find out if there was a 'threat' on the other side or not.

When Sparks answered the door, he found Carmen on the other side. He turned back to Ziggy and said, "It's Carmen, Ziggy. Want to say hi?"

"Carmen…?" Ziggy murmured, and looked hesitant for a moment. He ended up nodding, though.

Sparks opened the door and allowed Carmen to enter. The Braixen nodded to him in thanks, and then took a few steps towards Ziggy before squatting down to his eye level. "Hello again, Ziggy," she said calmly, "How are things going?"

Ziggy still seemed quite nervous in her presence. He was looking up at her with a tense expression, as if he was afraid to make even the smallest of wrong moves. "G…G-good," he eventually managed to squeak, "G-good, ma'am."

Carmen quietly chuckled. "No need to call me 'ma'am', you don't work for me. Right now, I'm just a friend, okay?"

Ziggy visibly gulped and then nodded.

"Your room is all set up next door," she informed him, "I had Danika adjust the lock so that you won't need a badge to enter. But, if you want some privacy or security, you can ask Sparks to lock it for you. Although, keep in mind that this means he'll also have to _un_lock it for you."

She then gave him a sweet smile. "Has Sparks been treating you well so far? Do you think you'd like to stay with us for a bit longer this time?"

"Umm…Y-yes, please…"

"That's good to hear, and I'm glad to have you with us. I'm sorry we had to meet under such circumstances, but we're all going to work hard to help you get a better life." She then slowly, calmly, extended one of her paws towards him. "Does that sound good?"

Ziggy stared up at her, and there was still fear in his eyes. He eyed her paw a couple of times without reacting in any way. Sparks tried to give him encouraging gestures, but he was hyper-focused on Carmen. Eventually, after almost a full minute of silence and stillness, Ziggy started to lift his own paw. He moved at a Slowpoke's pace, hesitating multiple times, but his paw slowly made its way towards the Braixen's black one. Ziggy's eyes darted back and forth between Carmen's paw and her face.

His paw made the tiniest of contact with hers, and he quickly yanked it back a few inches. It looked as if he had been shocked. Carmen didn't react to this at all, and simply kept her paw extended. It took a few more moments, but Ziggy's paw eventually found its way to hers once again. The two paws gently grasped one another, and a very light pawshake was exchanged.

"There we go," Carmen said softly, "I might be the boss here, but please just treat me like another friend. I hate it when Pokémon treat me like an all-powerful leader or something."

Ziggy chuckled nervously. "O-okay…"

The pawshake ended, but Carmen remained at his eye level. "So," she spoke, "I'm sure Sparks already explained this to you, but guests usually stay in the guest wing and we made an exception for you. We provide breakfast and dinner, courtesy of Liz, but lunch comes from outside the guild so you should ask Sparks to pick something up. Sparks has been 'assigned' to you, so he's your go-to Pokémon if you need anything, and he'll be the one for the most part that is working with you and helping you out."

Ziggy briefly glanced up at Sparks, who gave him a quick, humble smile. Carmen followed his gaze, and then chuckled. "Sparks does really good work," she said to Ziggy, "I'm really positive he'll be able to give you all the help you need within your month here."

At first Ziggy was nodding softly, but then he frowned. "Month…?" he asked.

Carmen nodded. "We provide lodging to guests for a period of one month. After that, you can no longer stay here."

The range of emotions that then flashed across Ziggy's face was astounding. He started out looking wide-eyed and shocked, which transitioned into sadness and worry, before finally ending with a look of disappointment and resignation.

"Sorry, Ziggy," Carmen said sympathetically, "Unfortunately, we're not a hotel. We can't provide long-term shelter. We just don't have the resources, and we may ultimately need the space. But, don't worry! Like I said, Sparks works wonders. I would bet money that, within a month, you won't even need shelter here anymore."

Ziggy didn't seem convinced. His shoulders slumped and he hung his head, and then he simply nodded in resigned acceptance.

* * *

Sparks had ended up calling on Liz to deliver food to Ziggy's room again at dinnertime, where the two of them ate in solitude.

He had completely forgotten to tell Ziggy about the one-month limit. Somehow, it had entirely slipped his mind until Carmen had brought it up. That had put a bit of a damper on Ziggy's mood, but what could Sparks do about it? That was the rule, and everybody had to follow it. If a Pokémon were still homeless by the time the limit was up, they would be directed to one of the homeless services in the city. Sparks felt bad about it, but he reasoned that he would only have to try harder to help Ziggy out.

Besides that, though, Ziggy seemed to be acclimating to his new living quarters quite well. That air of constant jittery nervousness that had followed him in off of the streets was ebbing away. It only took him a couple of hours to grow to feel comfortable in his new room. His second interaction with Liz had gone much better than the first, too.

So, as 7:30pm rolled around, Sparks decided to ask Ziggy if he would like to meet some of the other members of his guild.

"They're all going to be helping you out one way or another while you're here, and I'm sure they'd all like to say hello," Sparks said to the unsure Buizel.

Ziggy gulped. "Ummm…I, uh…" He was visibly shrinking back, as if retreating into a shell he didn't have. "I dunno…"

"Buddy, I promise you they're all as friendly as me or Carmen or Liz."

"Mnn…" Ziggy wrung his paws and bit his lip. "What about…others…?"

"Hm? You mean other clients? Nobody's really around at this time of the evening, and most of our guests usually stay in and around the guest wing. We don't have to go there. That's fine."

Ziggy gulped again, and then looked up at the Raichu with the eyes of a cub. "Will…y-you be with me…th'whole time…?"

"Of course I will."

It had taken a bit of convincing, but eventually the Buizel agreed to leave his room and meet some of the other guildmembers. The simple act of walking to the exit of the alumni wing again showcased how unused Ziggy was to being out in the open. He looked very self-conscious about both his appearance and his visibility. Even when there was nobody else in the hallway, he tried to hide himself behind Sparks' larger frame.

"If it gets to be too much for you, just let me know and we can go back to the room," Sparks told him.

"Okay…"

"There's no shame in that. Baby steps are important."

"Mhm…"

When they reached the door at the end of the hall, Sparks paused and said, "Everyone was just in here about a half hour ago eating dinner, but there's usually a couple of alumni who hang out in this room afterwards to talk and relax. Why don't we see who's out there?"

Ziggy looked stressed. He did not look like he wanted to go through that door at all.

"You okay? You wanna go back to the room?" he asked.

"Uhh…" Ziggy looked conflicted for a short time before eventually answering, "N-no, I'm okay… I'm just…just…"

"Don't worry about being a shiny, Ziggy. I promise you that it's okay."

"Ngh… I'm sorry…I j-just don't believe you…"

Sparks frowned. "That really makes me sad to hear…" he lamented softly. Then, he said, "Well, would it make you feel any better if I promised to run you back to the room as fast as I could the moment anybody says anything mean at all about you? That's not going to happen, but what if I promise you that?"

"I…I guess so," Ziggy said as he wrung his paws.

"It'll be fine. I can guarantee it."

"…Can you see how many Pokémon are out there…?"

Sparks took a peek out of the door, and then informed Ziggy that there were five alumni in the common room. The number seemed to spook him at first but he eventually mustered up the courage to nod at Sparks, indicating that he was ready to enter the room. Sparks could sense Ziggy standing very close to him, their fur brushing against one another at some points. He wondered if Ziggy was going to want to hold his paw, but it didn't quite reach that level.

Finally, after giving Ziggy one last moment to take some deep breaths, Sparks opened the door and led him through.

In the common room, Sparks quickly nodded in greeting to his fellow guildmembers and then turned to look at Ziggy. The Buizel was a couple of steps away from literally hiding in Sparks' shadow, looking nervous and very self-conscious. There was a hint of shame in his expression. Sparks got the feeling that, before this present week, Ziggy had never willingly shown off his fur colour to this many Pokémon before.

"Everybody, this is Ziggy," Sparks said to the others. Thankfully, they all seemed to pick up on his nervousness and all of them silently waved to him and nothing more.

There were three Pokémon sitting at the table, two of which Ziggy had already met. Kona was sitting off to one side, idly reading the newspaper, and sitting on the other side of the table was Terry. Seated next to the Eevee was Rico, a young Riolu who was about the same age as Terry. Rico wore a blue scarf around his neck, and the two looked like they had been having a lively conversation before Sparks had arrived.

Elsewhere in the room, Kandice was relaxing on the couch. The Audino looked somewhere between bored and content, but was looking at the newcomer with interest in her kind eyes. Finally, seated and adorably curled up on one of the beanbag chairs, was Javier the Quilava. He was doing such a good impression of a noodle that one could hardly see the necklace that he always wore. All of them were wearing badges that were identical to Sparks', save for the colour.

Sparks turned back to Ziggy. "Wanna go sit at the table?"

"O…Okay…" Ziggy stammered, not seeming very keen on the idea.

Everyone remained silent as Sparks led Ziggy over to the table towards where Kona was sitting. Sparks sat himself down, and then patted the open seat that was between himself and Kona. Ziggy gulped, his eyes darting between the gazes of all the other Pokémon, and hesitated quite a bit before finally summoning up enough courage to sit down.

"Hello again," Kona said kindly.

Ziggy had nearly jumped right out of his fur at the sound of Kona's voice. He turned to the Dewott, who was offering him a pleasant smile. "H…hi…" Ziggy replied softly.

"You're looking better already," Kona observed.

"…I am…?"

"Yeah. It's amazing what a good meal can do, hm?"

"Y-yeah…"

Sparks then gestured to the opposite side of the table, where the other two occupants were waiting to be addressed. "And this is Terry and Rico," Sparks introduced them, "They're the rookies."

Rico immediately gave Sparks a flat look. "Oh, real nice."

Snickering, Sparks said, "What? It's true."

The Riolu's frown lasted a couple more seconds before he started snickering as well. It was almost a tradition at this point to poke fun at the most recently joined recruits, but Rico always managed to take the good-natured ribbing in stride.

"What's up? I'm Rico," he said, reaching his paw over the table towards Ziggy. When the Buizel flinched and shrunk back, Rico quickly abandoned the pawshake and sat back down. "Sorry. Didn't mean to scare ya."

"I told you about him, remember?" Terry said to him.

"Right, right. Sorry. I just kinda did it without thinking…" Rico said as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck, "But anyway, hey! Welcome!"

"And you remember Terry, right?" Sparks said.

"Hi!" the Eevee said with a friendly wave.

"Terry and Rico joined the guild only about a year ago, at the same time," Sparks explained.

"Yeah!" Terry chirped, "We've known each other for years, and now we're a team! We work together a lot out in the field."

"We still need to come up with a cool team name," Rico commented, "But nothing we've come up with so far is any good."

"Yeah, nobody wants to get help from 'Team Terrico'. Sounds like some dumb horror novel."

Everybody at the table laughed, while Ziggy continued to sit silently and look awkward and out of place.

"So, uh… Your name's Ziggy, right?" Terry asked. When Ziggy subtly nodded, Terry said, "That's a neat name. I don't think I've ever heard it before. Is it your real name or a nickname?"

"Uhm…" Ziggy shrunk back a little from the questioning. "I dunno…It's…just what Pokémon call me…"

"Oh…" Terry replied, paused, and then added, "I guess that's just what a name is though, huh? A thing that Pokémon call ya?"

"Mhm…"

Ziggy still looked quite unhappy to be in the presence of others. He was very subtly hanging his head, and Sparks wondered what sort of thoughts were going through his mind. Was he imagining insults in his head and reacting to them even though they weren't real? Not a single Pokémon in the entire building, besides that one awful client, had even mentioned the colour of his fur.

"Hey," Rico spoke up, "I like your fur."

Sparks' head shot in the direction of the Riolu so fast that he almost got whiplash.

Rico looked confused for a moment, but then shook his head and clarified. "I-I mean the way it's groomed. I like the furstyle you've got going on."

A silent breath of relief slipped out of Sparks' muzzle, and then he slowly turned to regard the Buizel. Ziggy looked strange. Sparks hadn't seen his reaction to Rico's initial comment, but now he looked somewhat odd. He looked as if he had been hit with a Pin Missile and was now wondering why it didn't hurt.

"I…" Ziggy muttered, "I-It's not groomed, or anythin'…'S just messy…"

"Yeah, but I think it's a good look on you."

Sparks gave Rico a sidelong glance. Rico's fur was always styled in an intentionally messy-looking way. He always said that he liked how 'wild' it made him look, so these comments were not unheard of coming from him.

Unfortunately, what followed was a very awkward silence between all four Pokémon. Sparks spent a moment trying to figure out what to do next, but his conundrum was answered for him when Kandice walked over to the table.

"Hello, sweetie. Welcome," she said in her sugary-sweet voice.

Ziggy had half-rotated in his seat so he could face her, but was already shrinking back and trying to make himself as small as possible. "H…Hi…" he squeaked.

Kandice was probably the kindest, sweetest, most generous and caring soul in the entire organization. She abhorred violence and was just about as non-threatening as you could possibly get. That being said, though, Kandice was _very_ tall. She was just a little bit taller than Sparks was, which meant she was almost double the height of Ziggy.

"Kandice is our guild nurse," Sparks explained, "She spent four years at university, so if something's wrong you can always count on her."

The Audino nodded, though she gave Sparks a sidelong glance that said 'Stop putting me on a pedestal, please.' When Ziggy didn't move or say anything else, she spoke up again. "The infirmary is just out that door to the main hall and down at the far right side, behind the big staircase. I'm usually there, unless I'm out on a job, but there are aides who work there as well and can give you first aid if you need it. If a patient needs me, I always rush back."

Still, Ziggy didn't offer much response. When the room fell somewhat silent, with everyone seemingly waiting for him to say something, Ziggy finally murmured, "O…Okay…"

Kandice seemed concerned about Ziggy's reaction. "Well…That's Javier, sitting over there," she said, gesturing behind her to the beanbag chair with the Quilava curled up in it. Ziggy, Kandice and Sparks all turned to look in his direction.

Javier's head was up and he was looking in their direction. He shot a brief smile in Ziggy's direction and waved with his paw.

"He's kind of quiet," Sparks said to the Buizel, "but he's really nice. Once he gets to know you, he'll talk to you some more."

"Umm….Okay…?" Ziggy murmured.

The awkward silence returned with a vengeance. Sparks and Kandice both shared an unsure look.

"Uhh…" Kandice said, "I hope Liz has been feeding you well. I can see you definitely need a lot of good meals…"

Sparks gave Ziggy a chance to answer for himself, but Ziggy just continued to shrink on the spot. "She has," he finally answered to Kandice, "No need to worry about that."

"Good."

Ziggy's frown was just as heavy as when he'd first entered the room. Despite all of the kind faces and friendly atmosphere in the room, they were getting nowhere. Sparks had deduced that Ziggy's behaviour most likely stemmed from lots of negative interactions with others. However, even when such interactions were absent, Ziggy's mood did not seem to improve.

Then, Sparks had an idea and decided to shift gears. He recalled their conversation from earlier in his room. Back then, Ziggy had been visibly uncomfortable whenever the spotlight was on him, even if it was just a simple question, but he had relaxed a little when Sparks had been talking about himself and his own past. Maybe that was a better way to break the ice.

"So, guys," Sparks said, addressing all of the others, "Why don't we tell Ziggy what the active team is all about?"

"Sure!" Terry replied, and there was a quiet chorus of agreement. Ziggy, though still frowning, had at least lifted his head and was now shyly looking at the others.

Kona started talking first. "Everybody in this room, except Sparks, is part of this guild's active team. We're the ones who are employed here full time. We go out every day and perform guild duties."

"The Radiant City guild is the largest guild in the Rescue Society," Kandice continued, "Considering that not only is Radiant City the largest city in the land, but that we're also housed in the Society's headquarters itself. So, our team is pretty large. I believe we have at least 50 fully qualified members working for us right now."

"But because the city and the guild are so big," Sparks said, "A lot of our guildmembers don't work here full time, or are specially trained in one specific area. Some of them have other jobs and only help out when they have the time. We see them around the building, but they don't live here like we do."

"We're the 'active team', though!" Rico said, adopting a proud grin, "We're the best of the best!"

Terry rolled his eyes and elbowed the Riolu. "We're more like a traditional guild, that you might see somewhere like Treasure Town or Lively Town. A group of around 10 hard-working Pokémon whose mission every day is to help others out. We live here, we directly follow our guildmaster's orders, and we're always available. Every morning, the active team wakes up and gets together for a morning meeting, where Carmen discusses with us what we'll all do today."

Sparks glanced down at Ziggy, and was pleased to see that he was paying more attention than before. His expression was a bit livelier and his eyes were attentively following each speaker. He seemed intrigued by what everyone was saying.

"So," Kona added, "We're sort of like a guild within a guild…within a guild."

Ziggy looked a bit confused at that remark. "Uhh…"

"There must have been a guild in Sunshine Village, right? I'm sure you probably saw them at some point," Sparks spoke, "They were probably wearing badges like ours."

"Um…" Ziggy looked deep in thought for a moment, and then subtly nodded. "I think so…I think I remember seeing them all gathered together in the park once…"

"Right! So, our guild is a _lot_ bigger than theirs is, but the active team is pretty much just like the one in Sunshine Village."

"Oh…Okay," Ziggy said with a curt nod, seeming to at least basically understand what was being said. After a moment, though, he looked over at Sparks with a puzzled expression. "Wait," he said, "Did he say…'except you'?"

"Ah, yeah," Sparks replied, "I used to be on the active team. Not anymore, though… I still live here, though, and I still attend the morning meetings… I'm a bit of a special case."

"Sparks was here before any of us were!" Terry piped up, "He's taught all of us at least a little something along the way."

"Thanks for making me feel old, Terry," Sparks retorted playfully.

"You're not old!" Terry fired back.

"I'm the oldest one in the building!"

"Well that's just 'cus it's a building of mostly really young Pokémon."

Ziggy was watching their back-and-forth with a slightly confused look. "S-so, um…" he said, his voice quiet at first before he cleared his throat and spoke up, "Y-you're not on their…team?"

Sparks shrugged. "Technically no, practically yes? It's not super important, I'll explain it to you some other time. The only difference is that I don't go out on 'jobs' like these guys do. Carmen assigns stuff to me."

"We like having him around, though! Wouldn't be the same without him."

Both Sparks and Ziggy turned to look at Kona because his voice had sounded funny when he had spoken just then. Sparks saw that Kona had taken out a chocolate bar from somewhere and had taken a bite.

"Well thanks, Kona. That's nice of you to say," Sparks said.

Kona flashed the Raichu a quick, friendly smile, and then went back to take another bite. As he was chewing, though, he turned to his side again. The Dewott had noticed Ziggy staring at him. Ziggy started slightly and quickly glanced away, looking embarrassed.

A second later, there was a quiet _crack_ sound. "You want some?"

Ziggy looked at Kona once more, and his gaze drifted down to the Dewott's paws. Kona had snapped the chocolate bar in half and was holding one half out towards him. "…What?" Ziggy mumbled.

"Here, you can have some if you want. I don't mind." Kona then reached out and deposited the half chocolate bar into Ziggy's paw.

Ziggy stared down at the confection, looking like he didn't know what to do. He glanced up at Kona with a questioning gaze, but Kona was busy taking another bite out of his own half.

"K…Kona…?"

"Mm?" the Dewott replied, glancing over.

"Wh…?" was the only thing the Buizel could muster.

Kona swallowed his bite and then smiled in a friendly way. "You were looking at it like you wanted some, so I thought I'd share. You like chocolate? I don't blame you; chocolate's good!"

Ziggy wordlessly stared for a few moments, making Sparks quietly chuckle. It might take a couple of days before he stopped doing that every time somebody gave him free food.

"Really…?" Ziggy whispered.

"Yeah, sure!"

Ziggy looked starstruck, to say the least. "Th…Thank you…"

"No problem!"

Ziggy humbly lifted his gaze and looked at all the other smiling faces sitting at the table. When he finally ended up looking in Sparks' direction, the Raichu gave him an 'I told you so' smile.

* * *

While the meeting with the group of guildmembers had gone pretty well, Ziggy was still noticeably uncomfortable the entire time. Friendly or not, Ziggy still didn't seem comfortable in crowds of Pokémon yet, even small ones, so Sparks eventually decided to cut the meet and greet short. Everyone had given Ziggy a friendly wave and a goodbye, which Ziggy had shyly returned.

"Do you feel okay to meet one more?"

The question had unnerved Ziggy a little at first. But, after clarifying that it was only one single Pokémon, Ziggy finally agreed.

So now, Sparks was leading Ziggy to another area of the society headquarters. They had exited out of the opposite end of the common room, ending up in the main entry hall. Thankfully it had been empty, so Sparks had led Ziggy up to the second floor and the two were now entering the wing that was located directly above where they had just been.

There were a few doors with labels on them, mostly meeting rooms and other such facilities, as well as some tables, bulletin boards and potted plants here and there in the hallway. Sparks headed for a specific door, Ziggy following close behind him.

Sparks simply opened the door, knowing ahead of time that its occupant didn't mind not knocking before entering. The room inside was slightly darker than the outside hallway, but Ziggy followed Sparks without hesitating.

"Ziggy?" Sparks said, "This is Danika."

The room they were in was actually quite small, but that was just about the only mediocre thing about it. At the far corner of the room, opposite where the door was, there was a desk with something massive sitting upon it. It was mechanical, featured a flat front like a picture frame, and had all manner of flashing lights and buttons surrounding it. Resting against both walls next to the device were tall box-shaped objects with even more lights and unidentifiable gizmos on it. Ziggy was already staring wide-eyed at the fantastic array.

On the floor in front of the desk sat a large rolling swivel chair with a comfortable-looking padded back. After a moment, the chair rolled back a few feet and then turned around, letting its occupant face towards the two visitors. "Hi Sparks. And hello to you as well!"

Danika the Sneasel sat in the chair, eying the newcomer and giving him a welcoming smile. She was about the same height as Ziggy, which was somewhat short for a Sneasel. There was a badge pinned to the fur on her chest, just like everybody downstairs had been wearing.

"Hi Danika," Sparks greeted her, "This is Ziggy, our new friend." The Raichu then glanced down, expecting to see Ziggy shyly avoiding eye contact like he usually did. However, he found Ziggy looking right at Danika, wearing an intrigued expression. It took him a moment to realize what the Buizel was probably looking at.

Ziggy was looking at the pair of red-rimmed glasses that Danika was wearing.

"Welcome to the guild, Ziggy," Danika said to him, "I see you're the one that stole Sparky-boy away from me?"

"…Huh?" Ziggy muttered confusedly.

"She's joking," Sparks clarified, "I was working with her on a project before I found you."

"Oh…S-sorry…"

Danika waved a claw dismissively and said, "It's fine, I'm a big girl. I can handle it myself!"

"Danika is the brains of our guild. We trust her with things like logistics, planning, research, communications, badge maintenance…"

The Sneasel counted with her claws and continued Sparks' list by saying, "Budgeting, budgeting, budgeting…Also, some more budgeting."

"Aw, but c'mon… You know Carmen appreciates it."

Danika rolled her eyes but had a good-natured smile on her face. "Yeah, yeah…So, this is the little runaway I've been hearing so much about huh?"

"Yup. He's going to be staying with us for the next month," Sparks replied with a nod.

When he glanced down at Ziggy, he saw that the Buizel was looking at her glasses again. When he felt the others' eyes on him, he quickly averted his gaze and ended up looking at the machinery sitting behind Danika once again. "What is…?" he murmured.

Danika glanced over her shoulder. "Oh, this old thing?" she said jokingly, but then adopted a more genuine tone. "That's a prototype for a brand new device that was just invented about a year ago. It's called a 'multifunction computing and analysis system', but I just call it a 'computer'. Our guild is one of the lucky few that gets to test one of these out before they go onto the market in about 14 months."

Ziggy was just looking at all the flashing lights like it was some sort of alien spacecraft.

"They're still testing some stuff, but right now this particular model runs a writing program for making things like newsletters and posters, lots of math and computational programs, lots of virtual space for images and documents, and tons of other neat stuff! But, the most important thing is that this is connected to a bunch of databases so I can use it to quickly look up information. I can pull up files from the city records, so long as they're public or I have clearance, of course, and lots of encyclopaedic information from the city library."

Sparks chuckled. "Slow down, Danika. I know you're excited, but don't confuse the poor boy…"

Ziggy did indeed look a little bit confused, but he was listening to Danika with his full attention.

"Here, let me show you!" Danika said, and then whirled around in her chair before anybody could say anything else. She pushed a button, and suddenly there was a loud humming noise that startled Ziggy. The large flat part suddenly lit up in white, bringing bright illumination to the rest of the room. Danika used her claws to quickly tap on something that was sitting on her desk, and as she did letters and words began to appear on the screen. It was a bit like an advanced typewriter, but Sparks knew that was only scratching the surface.

Not long afterwards, the flat part was suddenly filled with lots more words. Most notably, though, was a large photograph of an unknown Raichu that took up half of the available space.

"See here?" Danika spoke up, "I queried which Pokémon is the doofiest, and look what appeared on the screen!"

"Funny, Danika," Sparks said dryly.

Danika chuckled. "No, but seriously. This is the encyclopaedia entry for the Raichu species. See, there's the typical height and weight, evolution information, type, known moves and abilities… Normally you'd have to wander down to the library and take out the big huge 'R' book from the set of encyclopaedias to find this!"

"I still barely understand how it all works," Sparks commented, "Danika picked it up like 'snap!'"

"It's not so complicated. With a bit of time, anybody here could use it. The guild has actually been tasked with transferring some information into a digital format. And yes, Ziggy, the red glasses are my favourite."

Ziggy visibly started and covered his mouth with his paws. He looked almost mortified, which soon morphed into remorse and even a bit of fear. He must have been looking at her glasses again.

"It's fine, don't worry about it," Danika said with a smile, "Everybody checks 'em out when they first meet me. It's really not a big deal."

"S…S-sorry…" Ziggy whispered.

Sparks glanced at Danika for a moment. Those glasses she wore were really a defining feature. A ton of Pokémon in the city knew about the glasses-wearing Sneasel who worked for the guild.

Vision problems in Pokémon were incredibly rare. Pokémon, as a species, had a strong sense of vision that lasted well into old age. Unless there was an accident where a Pokémon's eyes were damaged, it was almost unheard of for a Pokémon to develop vision problems. Genetic vision deficiency was very rare, and it was just as rare to see corrective lenses being worn by a Pokémon.

Danika was 'one of the lucky few', as she herself liked to put it.

"It's okay, buddy. Calm down," Sparks said to his companion, who had reverted to his standard withdrawn state. Despite the reassurances and Danika's smiling face, though, Ziggy looked pretty miserable.

"Oh dear…" Danika said with a frown. She gave Sparks a look that silently said, 'I guess you weren't exaggerating…'.

The upset Buizel was trying to subtly hide behind Sparks' larger frame now.

Danika cleared her throat. "Well, uh, it was nice meeting you, Ziggy. I spend a lot of time up here, because I never seem to run out of work. As you can see…" She gestured to the opposite wall. Ziggy turned around and gasped softly when he saw the desk resting against the wall next to the door. He hadn't seen it when they had first come in, but it was practically overflowing with physical files and all manner of paperwork.

"I'll, uh….try to come help you one day if I can…" Sparks muttered.

"It's fine, Sparky. Your work's more important."

"Well, I mean…"

"Anyway," Danika said, addressing Ziggy once more, "My door's always open if you want to talk to me or ask me something. Sparks told me you're new to this city, right? I've been living here ever since I was hatched, so…"

Sparks regarded Ziggy again, but his condition wasn't improving much. "Tired, buddy?" he asked in a quiet voice, "Wanna go back to the room?" Ziggy only replied by making eye contact with him.

"Ziggy's had a big day," Sparks then said to Danika, "And, honestly, an even bigger one yesterday. I think we're gonna go relax for a bit."

"All right. Again, it was nice to meet you, Ziggy. I hope you enjoy your time with us!"

* * *

"So, as you can see, my guildmates all think they're hilarious…"

"Mhm…"

Sparks looked over at Ziggy upon hearing his somewhat gloomy response. They were back in Ziggy's room. It was getting late and it would be bedtime pretty soon. "Did you enjoy meeting my friends?" he asked delicately.

Ziggy looked up at him and was silent for a few moments. "They seemed…nice, I guess…"

"Well, that's the right impression to get because they're all very nice. And everybody that you didn't get to meet today, they're all just as nice. I've worked closely with quite a few of them for many years, so…" Sparks paused and regarded the quiet Buizel. "Did anybody stand out to you at all?"

"…Kona gave me…chocolate…"

"Yeah, Kona seems to like you. Maybe the two of you will get to be good friends."

"Mm…"

Sparks walked over and sat down on the cushions on the floor next to Ziggy. The Buizel had a bit of a blank look, and was almost staring off into space. The meet with the other Pokémon had gone perfectly in Sparks' mind. Everybody had been cordial and polite, nobody had even batted an eye at his fur colour, and nothing had particularly set off Ziggy's anxiety.

So why did he still look so gloomy?

"Ziggy? Buddy?" Sparks said in a gentle voice, "What's wrong?"

The Buizel didn't answer.

"I thought today went pretty well. Don't you? What's still bothering you?

"I'unno…" Ziggy muttered.

"Tell me, Ziggy," Sparks pressed, "Please?"

The room was silent for a few more moments. Ziggy didn't look at Sparks, and instead just stared glumly at the floor. Sparks was about to speak up again, but he stopped himself when he caught a glimpse of a single tear rolling down Ziggy's cheek.

"This's happened before…" Ziggy croaked, almost too quietly to hear.

"Huh? Happened before? What do you mean?"

"Pokémon who come and they say they're gonna help me…"

Sparks blinked, confused. "I…I don't follow…"

That's when Ziggy finally turned to look at him. The look in his eyes could only be called 'hopeless'. "They _don't_…" he said, "They find me, and they take me somewhere, and they promise they'll give me food, or a place to stay…They seem all nice and friendly…a-and then…" He trailed off.

"Then…what?" Sparks said, now looking concerned.

Another tear rolled down his cheek. "Well," he murmured, "It kinda sucks when you wake up…c-covered in orange paint."

A horrified look appeared on the Raichu's face. "Oh no…"

"Or…" Ziggy hiccupped. "O-or, they tie you to a post and eat a big dinner in front of you…Don't even toss table scraps at you, and just leave you there until you chew through the rope… Or even if they just…want to show you to their friends so they can…point and laugh. Point and laugh at the…the freak…"

"Ziggy…"

The Buizel hung his head and sighed.

Sparks was just shaking his head. He wanted to reach over and give the Buizel a hug, but refrained from doing so lest he scare the poor Pokémon. "Ziggy, I…" he said, having trouble finding his words, "That's awful, Ziggy. I figured you'd had a rough time, but… That's a lot, buddy… I'm so sorry…"

"I just…fool myself into believing it every time…"

"Ziggy," Sparks continued in a more firm tone of voice, "I _really_ hope you don't think that's what's going on here. I mean, we-"

"I _want_ to!" Ziggy looked up at Sparks, tears in his eyes, "I-I want to…I want to believe it…s-so badly…" Then, he sniffled and looked down at the floor. "You're so nice…a-and so generous…but it's just so hard to believe…so hard to…trust you…"

"I…" Sparks frowned. He was at a loss for words.

"Every time I think it's gonna get better…it doesn't…it just gets worse…"

"But… Ziggy, didn't everybody here treat you really nicely today? Haven't _I_ treated you with nothing but kindness and respect?"

Ziggy hung his head. "So did the ones who painted me orange…"

"Nobody's going to paint you orange here, Ziggy. I promise you, I won't let that happen. Nobody here will. Carmen would literally erupt in flames if we allowed something like that to happen." Sparks then sighed and shook his head. "Ziggy, I…I know, okay? Chromaphobes can be…really awful Pokémon. I'm just sorry you've met so many of them."

"Chroma-what…?" Ziggy murmured, turning to look up at him.

"Pokémon who fear or dislike shinies," Sparks replied, simplifying the answer, "And…Well, if I had to guess…You feel like the whole world is just full of two types of Pokémon; shinies and chromaphobes. Right?"

When Ziggy nodded his head, Sparks felt his heart break.

"Well…It isn't like that, bud," Sparks said, "Believe it or not, there _are_ Pokémon out there who are neither. There's me, there's Carmen, and you met seven other ones today. Seven is only scratching the surface. They're out there, Ziggy… It's just unfortunate that they can be…hard to find, sometimes…"

Still, though, Ziggy didn't respond. He was just as withdrawn as ever. At the very least, Sparks could see that Ziggy no longer seemed anxious when it was just the two of them alone in a room. However, there was still a heavy cloud of depression hovering around the poor Pokémon. And, Sparks knew that as soon as somebody else came into the picture, or when he himself left, Ziggy's anxiety would return in spades.

"…Should I just leave now?"

Sparks' ears perked up, and he shot Ziggy a baffled look. "What? Why? Things are going well. Why would you leave?"

Ziggy wasn't looking at him. "D'you really think you're gonna be able to fix me in a month?"

"Well…" Sparks hesitated slightly. He had not be prepared for the rather heavy question. "Well, first of all, you're not 'broken'. Don't say that about yourself. Second, I can't promise we'll make you completely 100% better, but even just taking a few big steps towards a better life will be helpful for you. I know a month doesn't seem like much, but we're good at what we do!"

"I should probably just leave now and save you the trouble…"

"Ziggy…" Sparks hid an exasperated sigh and glanced off to the side. Pessimism oozed off of every one of the Buizel's words. Even meeting some really nice Pokémon today had barely made a dent in Ziggy's heavy defenses. Sparks just hadn't realized how badly Ziggy's trust was fractured as well.

If he had learned something today, it was that this was probably going to require a _lot_ more work than he had first thought.


	6. A Day in the Guild

Chapter 6 \- **A Day in the Guild**

"So, how does this sound?"

Ziggy lifted his head and regarded Sparks' smiling face, a touch of dreariness in the Buizel's eyes. Ziggy had felt so depressed the previous night that he had fallen asleep early. As a result, he was now awake quite early in the morning. On the surface he seemed better, by a little bit if nothing else.

"Why don't I take you on a little tour of our guild?" Sparks continued, "I'll be your tour guide. I can show you around the building and tell you how some things work around here. You won't have to meet anyone, and you don't have to talk to anybody if you don't want to. As far as talking goes, it'll be just you and me for now."

"Uhh…" Ziggy considered the request for a moment. Sparks was again banking on Ziggy's curiosity for their organization. He hoped that if he could warm Ziggy up to the guild's altruistic intentions and quell those lingering doubts in the Buizel's mind, they could then move onto more socially-oriented challenges.

After a moment, Ziggy looked up at him and asked, "Do I…still get breakfast?"

Sparks laughed and nodded. "Of course, of course. The guild eats breakfast, and then the day begins! We can just eat here, but don't take too long. The first thing I want to share with you is the morning briefing."

* * *

One breakfast later, this time brought to the room by Sparks himself, the Raichu had managed to coax Ziggy out of the room once more. This was done on the promise that Ziggy could hide behind his larger frame whenever he wanted to.

Once the clock chimed 9am, Sparks led Ziggy back out into the common room. The rising sun was shining through the windows, filling the whole room with a gentle orange glow. The long table was devoid of Pokémon, though there were plenty of remnants of this morning's breakfast waiting to be cleaned up. Rather, all of the Pokémon in the room were gathered around the whiteboard situated at the far end, with Carmen standing next to it.

At first, Ziggy was frightened and immediately darted behind Sparks. It was easy to see why, though, as all 12 members of the active team were there. Everybody that Ziggy had already met was there; Kona, Terry, Rico, Kandice, Javier, Liz and Danika. Also standing there were Lupe the Vulpix - who Ziggy had indirectly met during his first visit - Jules the Sylveon, Shay the Yamper, Tora the Pigeot and Akash the Deerling.

These were the 12 members of the guild who worked every day, besides holidays and the occasional day off. When somebody colloquially mentioned the 'Radiant City Guild', it usually referred to Carmen and these 12.

The Braixen was already speaking to them, so Sparks kept to a respectable distance so he could quietly speak to Ziggy without interrupting her. "That's the morning briefing," he explained, "Every morning after breakfast, the team gathers together to talk about what they're going to do for the day. That's when Carmen will give out special assignments, if she has any, and she'll ask for updates on jobs and requests that are still in-progress."

"…Lupe, a client from the south side wants to hire somebody to escort them across town," Carmen said, addressing the Vulpix, "They're moving something valuable between homes and it's large enough that they can't exactly be discrete about it. Can you handle a bit of bodyguard duty?"

Lupe sat up straight and nodded. "Consider it done!"

"Good. They don't anticipate problems, but they want to make absolutely sure. Usually just the sight of the badge is enough to deter petty crime anyway." Carmen cleared her throat and moved a sticky note from one area of the board to another. "Danika, you've got your assignment…Javier you're still working with that disabled client…I do believe that is everything, so the rest of you can hit the request board."

A number of heads in the group nodded, including Terry, Rico and Kona.

"Alright, then!" Carmen proclaimed, "Let's do some good, today!"

"Yes, Guildmaster!" the other 12 chanted in unison.

"Make Radiant City proud, everybody!"

With that, the whole group began to disperse, save for Carmen who remained at the board for the time being. Most of the group immediately headed for the door that lead out to the main hall, though a few started heading back to their dorm rooms, likely to pick up something they needed. A few of the guildmembers took notice of Sparks at this time and said a quick hello.

Sparks glanced back at Ziggy, who was predictably hiding himself halfway behind the Raichu's body. Ziggy was at least watching the guildmembers as they got to work, but would noticeably avert his eyes if someone looked right at him.

"Now everybody's off to help make the city a better place," Sparks said, continuing his explanation, "We use that board to help keep track of ongoing jobs. Wouldn't want to forget somebody and leave them behind. Today it was just the 12 core members of the active team, but sometimes other guildmembers will be at the morning briefing if they have nothing else to do for the day, or are looking for their next assignment."

The two stood there for a moment and watched the crowd disperse. Thankfully, nobody came up to talk to them as they were all pretty focused on their own work. Ziggy seemed somewhat content to watch from a distance.

"What about Carmen…?"

Sparks glanced back upon hearing Ziggy's tiny voice. "She works herself to the bone, that crazy girl," he said with a chuckle, "Right now she's probably trying to figure out just how many responsibilities she can stack on her plate today. She does jobs just like the rest of the guild, but she usually has to stay here in headquarters to do them, just in case she's needed for 'guildmaster stuff'. That's all on top of overseeing everybody else and stepping in if one of our guildmembers needs help."

"Gosh…"

"She's smart, though. She's a workaholic, but she knows when to take a break. It was no surprise when she became the next guildmaster. Everybody could see how strong her dedication and work ethic were."

After a few more minutes, only Carmen and the two of them remained in the room. Carmen looked like she had her head in the clouds, thinking about too many things at once, so Sparks didn't plan on bothering her.

"Let's go see the request board, now," he said to Ziggy, "I'll tell you how all that stuff works."

"Uh…Okay…"

He started to lead Ziggy towards the spot in question. Halfway across the room, though, he paused and realized a potential flaw in this plan. "Ah, Ziggy?" he spoke up, "The request board is…outside."

"Outs-"

Ziggy's eyes opened wide and he looked up at Sparks with a worried expression. Sparks had expected him to panic at the mere mention of the public outdoors, but there had to be some conflicting thoughts there. Ziggy didn't want to be outside where Pokémon could see him, but outside was basically all he knew. He'd lived pretty much his whole life outside.

"Well…" Sparks spoke up, hoping to interrupt Ziggy's conflicted train of thought, "It's out on the grounds out the front door. It's still inside those hedges, if you remember those. But don't worry. At this time of the day, nobody's gonna be out there except guild members. I promise."

"Uhh…"

"If you see somebody else out there, you can run back indoors if you really need to."

Ziggy considered the proposition for a moment, and eventually gave Sparks a timid little nod. Sparks felt like a parent leading a cub into a spooky haunted house, as Ziggy began to trail _very_ closely behind him.

Sparks led Ziggy out into the main hall, where a few other guild members were going up and down the stairs, and then walked over to the main front doors of the building. He opened one of them up, letting bright sunlight shine through. Ziggy immediately winced and covered his eyes from the harsh glare. "Looks like a warm one today," the Raichu commented.

He then stepped out onto what was essentially the building's front lawn. It was a square-shaped area surrounded on three sides by hedges. A stone path led from the front door right to the gate at the opposite end, which was currently closed and locked. To the left and right of the path were well-kept green lawns, and a few flowers were growing at the base of the hedges.

Sparks glanced behind him and saw that Ziggy was hovering at the doorframe. He gave the Buizel an encouraging nod, and then started to walk towards the next stop on this little tour.

Over to the side, just a few steps off the stone path and about halfway between the front doors and the gate, was a large wooden board. The front face of it was covered from top to bottom with papers, posters and flyers of all sizes and colours, attached with tacks, staples, or even just tape. Five of the previously-seen guildmembers, including Terry, Rico and Kona, were gathered around the board and studying its contents.

"Yup! That's the request board, over there," Sparks announced.

The Raichu felt a presence at his side, and glanced over his shoulder to see that Ziggy was nestled safely in his shadow. He was still squinting and seemed irritated by the unseasonably bright sunlight. Sparks recalled that Ziggy probably spent a lot of his time avoiding the sun and hiding in the shadows.

"I…heard some others say that name before…" Ziggy mumbled.

Sparks nodded. "The request board is what guildmembers go to if they don't have a specific assignment from Carmen. Let me tell you how this works. As I explained to you, our guild's mission is to help Pokémon wherever help is needed. If a Pokémon needs our help, they have two options.

"Option one is to write up their request and put it up on the request board. This is totally free; anybody can come in here and tack up a request for help with anything they need. Moving furniture, cubsitting, volunteer work, all sorts of stuff. Guildmembers can then go to the board, select a request, and do it! But see, that's the thing. Because it's free to just make any request, clients understand that there's no obligation for any of our alumni to accept this request. But, of course, we try to do as many of them as we can.

"Option two, on the other paw, is to pay us a fee to hire us specifically. That'll guarantee that their request for help will be completed, and the money is then used to help fund our services. That's when Carmen will specifically assign someone to the client. Sometimes somebody from the active team, and sometimes one of our other members."

"Mm…" Ziggy nodded in understanding, but said nothing more.

The two stood there beside the door for a while, watching as some of the guildmembers picked out requests from the board. Kona had just pulled off a blue sheet of paper with a picture of a Pokémon on the front, and was now quickly making his way back inside. Terry and Rico were working together, trying to decide which request to go with. They weren't arguing, but they weren't exactly agreeing on one either.

After quite a bit of silence from his companion, Sparks turned back and asked, "You doin' all right?"

"Y-yeah…Kinda…" Ziggy replied, "The gate's closed…so…"

"Yup," Sparks explained, "Our gates are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week…except for 15 minutes every morning, when the guild looks at the request board. We do that so citizens don't all rush in and mob our alumni. Y'know, corner them and try to pressure them into taking their request. We want everything to be fair and even here, after all."

"Mhm…"

Rico started to laugh at something, and Terry gave him a playful swat on the head. Jules had picked out a job, but he went to stand by the gate instead of heading back inside. Looked like he already had everything he needed for the day and was just waiting for Carmen to open the gate again.

"Boy, it looks like it's actually gonna be a nice, sunny day," Sparks commented, "It's autumn, so I figured those kinds of days were gone for a while…"

Ziggy just responded with a noise that sort of sounded like a grumble.

Sparks looked back at him. "You don't like the bright sun?" he asked.

"Not really…"

"Well, that's okay." Sparks wanted to say that the sun made his fur shine quite nicely, which was an honest statement, but he knew that would just be a bad idea. Ziggy's unique fur colour was perfect to catch the sunlight and bask in it.

"Ah, well here comes Terry and Rico. Wanna say hi?"

Indeed, the Riolu and Eevee had finally picked out a request and were now jovially heading back to their rooms. They both had big smiles on their faces, looking like they were ready to conquer the day.

"Find something exciting?" Sparks asked as they passed by.

"We're gonna go pick berries in the park!" Terry answered with a cheer.

"So, no," Rico added, "But there's gonna be another dungeoneering one up there some time this week! I just know it! I feel it in my bones!"

"I still can't believe Carmen let us take that one," Terry commented.

"Well, I mean, you did a great job for your first cave exploration!" Sparks said, "And those don't come up very often anymore, so it's good to grab 'em when they show up!"

"Eh, it's fine," Rico said, "The park's cool to hang out in too."

"The park up on the hill by the east side?"

"Yeah. Gusty Glade Park. I used to climb rocks there when I was a cub!"

"Hi, Ziggy!" Terry spoke up.

Sparks felt the Buizel twitch behind him, and looked back expecting to see Ziggy ducking behind him. Ziggy had just started slightly, though. "Hi…" he replied meekly.

"How're you doing?" Terry asked, "Having fun hanging out with Sparks?"

"Umm…Y-yeah." Sparks smiled at that remark.

"He's the best at what he does! So, you can trust him to help you with whatever you need. He helped train me when I first joined!"

"Yeah, me too," Rico added.

"He did…?" Ziggy asked.

"Oh yeah! He's always around HQ helping everybody out. You don't even have to ask him; he'll just _do_ it!"

"Hey, c'mon now…" Sparks said with a chuckle.

"I wish I could've been here when you were on the active team, Sparks. It woulda been great to work alongside you!"

"Well, go bug Carmen and I'm sure she'll find all of the most boring and embarrassing stories from that time of my life, haha!"

"C'mon, Terr! We gotta go," Rico politely interrupted, "They're paying extra if we get more than 50! We can totally do that!"

"Ah, you're right!" Terry said with a nod, "We'll talk to you guys later, okay? We gotta get going if we're still planning to stop and eat lunch at noon!"

"We'll be surrounded by _edible berries_ the whole time!" Rico retorted.

"Yes, but the ones we _eat_ don't count, ya knucklehead!"

"Fine! Shoot me down with your precious 'logic'!"

The two continued to playfully banter with one another as they departed and headed towards the gate, standing next to Jules.

"Carmen comes out after the 15-minute period is over and opens the gate," Sparks explained, "Though she's been thinking about getting an extra alumni-only door installed, just like the one on the side of the building."

Ziggy was quiet for a moment as the two watched the rest of the alumni pick out a request, but then said, "I…I don't…"

"Hm?" Sparks said, turning his full attention to the Buizel.

"I don't get it…"

"Don't get what?"

"I thought…I thought you said those requests on that board were free…"

Sparks nodded. "They are," he stated. It took a moment for the realization to hit him. "Oh! Because Rico said 'pay extra', right? Yeah, that's gratuity."

"Huh?"

"Y'know, tips. Money or stuff that clients give out to say 'thank you'. It's not explicitly required, but pretty much everybody does it, even if sometimes it's just a couple berries or something. Yeah, we usually get a little something when we finish a request, and then half of that goes back to the guild."

Ziggy gave him a confused look. "Half…?"

"Well, half if it's money. Not other stuff. That's the guild's share, it helps with our finances." He then laughed and added, "It's a really good deal, though. Years ago, it used to be _ninety percent_ went back to the guild and guildmembers only got chump change! Thank heavens we don't live in that world anymore!"

"Oh, really…?"

"Yeah. We're funded by the government now, but that only covers so much. Taking a cut of gratuities helps to keep things running smoothly."

"I guess…that makes sense."

The door opened behind them, causing them both to look back.

"Ah, here's Carmen to open the gate now. The day begins!" He then glanced down at Ziggy and said, "I'm guessing you want to go back inside now?"

The Buizel, now looking quite nervous all of a sudden, nodded eagerly.

"All right," he said with an understanding nod, "But we're gonna work on this soon."

* * *

"You sure you're all right? We don't have to do this today if you don't want to…"

After the day had passed somewhat unceremoniously, with Sparks and Ziggy simply spending the hours either in the Buizel's room or quietly in the empty common room, it was now dinnertime. After a bit of discussion, Sparks had managed to convince Ziggy to join him and the others at the common room table for the meal.

While breakfast was a quick-and-done affair so that everybody could get to work, dinner was a bigger deal. It was the main social event of the day, and the entire active team usually spent at least an hour eating and just being in each other's company.

Sparks was still testing the waters with Ziggy. The poor Buizel had spent ninety percent of his life avoiding all social interaction entirely, and so Sparks was still trying to see how he behaved in slightly different social situations. Sparks hoped that this could help him come up with a better plan of attack when it came to helping Ziggy better himself.

On the surface, it appeared that Ziggy was just an extremely antisocial Pokémon with severe anxiety issues. Of course, Sparks knew it ran much deeper than this. There were issues with trust, self-image and optimism. Ziggy not only viewed himself as a 'freak', but as a thief and a criminal. Sparks wanted to show Ziggy that nobody here cared about his appearance or his past, and that he could, in fact, be welcome to sit with the others at the dinner table and share the same food. Sparks also hoped that this larger, but not _too_ large, gathering would facilitate an environment where he didn't _have_ to speak, as there would be plenty of conversation going around already.

"Mmmm…" Ziggy moaned softly, twiddling his paws while the two of them stood in his room.

"I don't wanna pressure you, but I assure you that everything will be fine. Only guildmembers will be at the table. Most of them you've already met, and I'll introduce you to the rest. I know you might not believe it, but I know you can do this."

"…Sparks?"

"Yes?"

"…I don't like this…"

Sparks frowned. "You haven't even given it a try yet."

"N-no…" Ziggy said, shaking his head, "I'll…I mean, I'll still give it a try…If you're there, then I'll…try it." He then sighed and frowned. "But I don't like it…"

"Can you tell me why not?"

Ziggy bit his lip, looking stressed out simply from the question alone. "I…don't like when Pokémon are looking at me…"

"Mm…" Sparks murmured as he nodded in understanding, "I get that. But, Ziggy, you know that everybody looks at everybody else. It's not like if you go out there, all 13 sets of eyes will be focused solely on you."

For a moment, Ziggy looked pessimistic. "In here, maybe, but…"

Sparks resisted the urge to sigh. He knew full well that if Ziggy were to walk into a room in any _other_ building in Radiant City, then all eyes certainly _would_ be on him. "Well, you're 'in here' now," Sparks said, "So just focus on that. One thing at a time. Just remember, I'm not asking you to suddenly start trusting the whole world. Just trust us, okay?"

To say that Ziggy looked 'okay' would be the biggest lie ever told, but at least the Buizel was starting to push himself just a little bit. After a few more shared deep breaths, Sparks led him back out to the common room. All members of the active team besides Liz were already seated at the table, chatting with each other and eagerly awaiting dinner. A few of them waved at Sparks or silently acknowledged him with a nod. There was space at the end of the table on one side for Sparks and Ziggy to sit next to each other, so that's where they went. Ziggy followed silently behind him, nervously casting his glance between the large amount of Pokémon in the room.

Again, Sparks thought about things from Ziggy's perspective. Living in the shadows and hiding from the public eye, being seen by a single Pokémon would normally be a cause for alarm in his past life. Now he was being seen by 12, soon to be 14. Ziggy wasn't running away, though, so Sparks had to commend him for that.

The Raichu took his seat first. He purposefully chose the spot at the very end of the table, so that Ziggy could sit beside him but also be seated next to another guildmember. Ziggy looked up at Sparks nervously, like a cub being led out onto a diving board for the first time, and then anxiously walked over to the open spot. He glanced at Sparks one more time, and then looked over at the other Pokémon he would be seated next to.

Jules was already engrossed in a conversation with Kandice, who was sitting on his other side, so at first he didn't even notice that Sparks and Ziggy had arrived. The Buizel carefully crept towards the bench and quickly slipped into the seat like he was trying to avoid being spotted. Jules was one of the Pokémon on the active team that Ziggy hadn't met yet, so he was still a 'stranger' to him. Predictably, Ziggy was looking up at the Sylveon with big, nervous eyes. Sparks shifted himself a little closer to Ziggy, deciding to grant him a little security blanket.

It didn't take long before Jules finished his conversation and finally took notice of his two new companions. "Heyyy, Sparky!" he said, "They finally let you out of the dungeon?"

Sparks chuckled. It had been quite a few days since he and the Sylveon had had a chance to speak to each other, and he was likely referring to Sparks having been working with Danika for so long. "Something like that, yeah."

"Well, you should know the outside world has changed a lot since your incarceration. The whole planet is now controlled by a single Caterpie who rules with an iron fist…"

"Shocking," Sparks replied with a wry smile, "Good thing I have you around, because the newspapers didn't even bother covering that."

Jules snickered, wearing his classic smug grin that was a touch cocky, but still friendly and playful. He briefly regarded Ziggy and then said to Sparks, "I figured she'd give you a reward for your hard work, but isn't a son a bit much?"

"Jules, be nice," Sparks said in a calm but warning tone.

"Aw, I'm just playin' around," he said with another chuckle, and then fully turned his attention towards Ziggy. "Hey there, the name's Jules."

Ziggy looked more confused than anything. "Um…J-Jewel…?"

"Heh…Pretty close, I guess. But no, it's 'Jules'."

"S-sorry…"

"You can think of me as a jewel though, if ya want. I know I have that certain…'shimmer'."

Ziggy looked confused, and then turned back to give Sparks a confused look as well.

"Yes, yes," Sparks said with a roll of his eyes, "You shine like a diamond in the rough, and all that jazz. What else is new?"

"You mean besides your new son?"

"Jules…"

"Hey, it's no big deal! He looks like he's pretty clever! You musta raised him good over the course of three days. They grow up so fast, don't they?"

Ziggy was looking back and forth between the two Pokémon, still looking quite confused.

"Psst…" Jules whispered as he tapped Ziggy's shoulder, "That was a compliment."

The Buizel looked up at the Sylveon once more, blinked a few times, and then sputtered, "O-oh, what? Huh? …C-clever?"

"Yeah, dude," Jules replied with a chuckle, "That's a good head on those shoulders, I can tell. I'm guessin' you could probably easily give someone the runaround. You've probably already done so for big Spark boy over there, am I right?"

"Wh-what…?"

"Well, to be fair," Sparks interjected, "Ziggy nearly gave me the slip when we first met. He's really fast. I might've lost track of him if he hadn't run into the fields."

Ziggy's head whipped back to Sparks once more. A strange mixture of emotions was written in his expression. There was remorse that Sparks was bringing up the sordid circumstances of their meeting, but also a bit of humble pride perhaps.

"Yeah," Sparks continued, "I haven't known him for too long, but I think he's pretty smart. I mean, it's been a long time since chasing somebody left me _that_ out of breath…"

Jules immediately started snickering, causing both the Raichu and Buizel to look at him.

"What?" Sparks asked.

"You know what you said," Jules said between snickers, a wily sort of grin on his face.

"Wh…- Oh. Oh, har. I see."

"'It's been a while', huh?"

Sparks sighed and rolled his eyes. "Grow up, Jules."

"Growing up is overrated!"

Then, an excited voice suddenly cut its way across the table. "Hey! Hey! It's the new guy!"

Sparks and Ziggy both looked up at the source of the voice, and ended up looking at Shay. The Yamper was seated across from them at the table, sandwiched between Akash and Lupe. His front paws were up on the table and his little tail was wagging like crazy.

"Hi! Ziggy, right?" he said with a big smile.

"Uhh…" Ziggy blurted out, "Ye- Uh…Hi?"

"Hiii! It's nice to meet you! I'm Shay!"

Ziggy was already shrinking back a little. Sparks gave Shay a silent look to try to get him to tone it down a little, though he knew it was likely in vain.

"Yeah, that's Shay," Sparks said to the unnerved Buizel, "Though his name sounds like 'shy', he's anything but."

"You look like fun!" Shay chirped, "D'you like games? What kinda games do you play?"

"Uhh…I…I dunno…" Ziggy murmured. Sparks frowned for a moment, wondering if Ziggy had ever played a 'game' of any sort in his life before.

"Oh, we gotta play some games sometime! Let's get together and hang out!"

"Wha…? Uh, I…" Ziggy sputtered.

"Relax, Ziggy," Sparks cut in, "Shay's brain runs on coffee. He's really, really friendly. He just has a lot of energy."

Ziggy visibly gulped. "Uh huh…"

"What about tag?" Shay spoke up again, "I heard Sparks say you're fast, so you're probably good at tag!"

"Tag…?"

"I'm pretty good at frisbee myself! I love playing that! But I love tag too! Oooh, I can already tell this'll be fun! You and I are g-"

Shay's nonstop babbling was suddenly silenced as a paw clamped down over his muzzle. "Come on, now. Reel it in, puppy."

The Yamper glanced over to his left towards Lupe, the Vulpix's paw still on his muzzle. "Whuf?"

"You're gonna scare him away, Shay," Lupe said in a gentle voice, "Tone it down a little, okay?"

Shay glanced back at Ziggy for a moment, and then nodded. Lupe finally removed her paw, and Shay gave Ziggy an apologetic look. "Sorry," he said, "I just love meeting new friends! I hope we _can_ be friends, Ziggy."

"Um… I-it's okay," Ziggy replied slowly, accepting the Yamper's apology but still seeming a bit unsettled.

Shay deflated a little, looking a touch remorseful, but then turned and directed his attention elsewhere. Sparks knew the Yamper well enough to know that it wouldn't be more than 15 seconds before something else brought a smile to his face.

"Hi, Ziggy. My name's Lupe."

Ziggy looked back to the Vulpix and saw that she was leaning over the table, extending her paw towards him. He hesitated nervously for a moment and glanced up at Sparks, who gave him an encouraging nod. A moment later, he slowly reached out and shook Lupe's paw. "H-hi…"

Lupe smiled sweetly. "I can tell this must be a bit overwhelming," she said, "I don't like crowds either. I've gotten used to being around all of these Pokémon, but if there's a lot of Pokémon all around I get a bit nervous sometimes…"

"You do…?" Ziggy replied.

"Mhm," she said with a nod, "It can be hard sometimes, I know. We all have something like that. A fear or a weakness that can weigh you down, but you just gotta take it slow. One step at a time, one day at a time."

"Umm… I…" Ziggy spoke quietly, "I'm, uh…"

Lupe shook her head. "It's okay, don't worry about it. You've got Sparks there with you. Just try to relax if you can and enjoy dinner. You've had Liz's food before, right? You know it's really good."

Sparks smiled. Lupe was a very compassionate Pokémon who could always easily pick up on the problems of others. She was a very helpful Pokémon and was easy to talk to, so Sparks hoped that Ziggy and her could get to know one another. Being friends with her might be beneficial for him.

"Thanks…" Ziggy said after fidgeting for a moment.

"You're welcome!" Lupe replied with a friendly grin, "And it was nice to meet you."

Ziggy glanced up at Sparks, who gave the Buizel an encouraging smile. "You haven't met Akash yet," he said, gesturing to the Deerling.

Akash had been distracted by something, but perked up upon hearing his name. "Hm? Oh yes, hello!" he said, "I'm Akash."

"Hi…" Ziggy replied.

Akash smiled. His coat was a slightly muted orange colour, reflecting the autumn season. It had always been Sparks' favourite colour for Akash, though he knew the Deerling certainly didn't agree.

"He's fairly new to the guild. I think his one year anniversary was just a couple months ago. Is that right?"

"Yup," Akash said, nodding, "It's been a lot of fun so far. Definitely lots of ups and downs." He paused for a moment and then chuckled softly. "Sparks, stop lookin' at me like that. What're you expecting, a big speech? I'm just me, haha!"

"Don't sell yourself short," Sparks replied, "You're a high achiever for somebody your age."

"Oh stop. It's not a contest." After he and Sparks chuckled some more, he looked at Ziggy again and said, "Well anyway, it's nice to meet you. I bet you're gettin' sick of hearing that, haha… Feel free to chat with me any time you want."

"Um…O-okay…"

"Is that everybody?" Sparks said a moment later, "Did I introduce you to…No, you haven't met Tora yet. She's all the way at the other end of the table, though. Maybe another time."

Everyone nearby then started to fall into their own conversations with those around them. Dinner was always a very lively time where everybody excitedly talked about their day. Sparks himself struck up a conversation with Lupe about the job she had been tasked with.

Carmen arrived at the table after a short while, looking as worn out as she usually did at this time of day. Carmen's timing was always perfect at dinner, because only a minute later Liz burst through the door carrying an amount of plates that should have been physically impossible. She was met with a resounding cheer. Dinner had been served.

The daily ritual of stuffing one's face with delicious food began. Liz laid out her array of culinary delights for everybody to sample and enjoy. It was never more than a modest sampling of food, but Liz somehow had the ability to make it look bigger and grander than it really was. She too joined everybody at the table, and then the whole team was there.

As dinner went on, the conversations continued and the laughter was plentiful. Everybody seemed to be in a good mood, which meant that everybody had done a good job at whatever they had been doing.

Everyone was talking to one another, but nobody was saying much to Ziggy. The Buizel had been momentarily mesmerized by the gracious offering of delicious free food, as usual. But once he had taken a plateful, he had gone right back into his shell as he slowly, cautiously ate his dinner.

It was okay that nobody was talking to him. The point that Sparks was trying to make was that no-one was going to suddenly stand up on the table, point at Ziggy and shout '_What's with your fur?!_' Sparks had hoped that it would relax him even just a little but, unfortunately, that didn't seem to be happening.

Nobody _was_ staring at his fur, but Ziggy was silently waiting for it to happen.

At one point, Sparks glanced over at his quiet companion. He saw that Ziggy had filled his plate with some Razz Berries, a few slices of Sitrus, a scoop of rice and a bun. It wasn't a lot, compared to everybody else's plates. In Ziggy's eyes, there was a difference between being handed free food, and _taking_ free food, even if it was open and up for grabs. It probably reminded him of his days of stealing food.

"You want anything else?" Sparks asked him, leaning in so he could speak softly.

Ziggy nervously glanced up at him, and then silently shook his head.

"Are you sure?"

"This's fine…"

Sparks nodded and accepted the Buizel's response. At least he wasn't starving himself or anything. He watched for a moment as Ziggy reached out and grabbed the bun. He was about to take a bite of it, but he then looked over at Lupe and Javier, who were also eating buns. Ziggy noticed that Lupe's was covered in butter, and Javier was using a butterknife to apply some to his own.

Ziggy glanced back down at his own bun, and then looked over at the plate of butter, which was sitting on the table just within his reach. There were a bunch of butterknives sitting next to it for anybody to use. It took the nervous Buizel a moment, but he eventually worked up the courage to sit up straighter so he could reach the butter, and started reach out towards the butterknives.

"How are things going, Sparks?" Lupe asked from across the table.

Sparks turned to her and replied, "Pretty good, all things considered."

"You let me know if you need my help with anything…"

The Raichu nodded. Lupe was known around the guild for being good with cubs. Ziggy wasn't exactly a cub, but her gentle nature could be helpful all the same. "I will. Thank you."

A sharp cry suddenly erupted from next to him, causing Sparks and most everybody nearby to turn and look at Ziggy. The Buizel was wincing, sucking in a few short breaths through his teeth, and clutching one of his paws close to his chest.

"Ziggy? What…?" Sparks' gaze was drawn to the table, where there was a perfectly-formed trail of little red dots leading from the butter plate back towards where Ziggy was sitting. The biggest of these red splotches was right next to the butter plate, and laying next to it haphazardly was a knife.

Not a butterknife, a _knife_.

"Oh, crap… Ziggy, are you okay?" Sparks asked, turning back to the Buizel. It was easy to piece together what had happened; Ziggy had picked up the wrong utensil and had then likely cut himself with it by accident.

"I-it's fine…" Ziggy murmured.

"Are you sure? Here, let me look at it."

"I'm fine, I'm fine…" Ziggy insisted. The Buizel wasn't looking at Sparks anymore. The room had gone noticeably quiet, and Sparks realized something rather unfortunate. The one thing he had promised wouldn't happen to Ziggy was indeed happening.

Every set of eyes in the room was on him.

"Ziggy, you're bleeding…" Sparks said to him in a calming voice.

"I know…"

"Are you sure you're all right? It looks like you nicked yourself pretty bad…"

Ziggy just continued to sit there, clutching his paw tightly against his chest. Although there remained a noticeable wince in his expression, Ziggy didn't react much further than that. It struck Sparks as strange how calm and collected Ziggy was, only seeming to be stressed out by the fact that everyone was looking at him.

"Here, let me see it please."

Sparks and Ziggy both turned around to find Kandice standing behind them. She had gotten out of her seat and moved behind them without either of them noticing.

"It's fine, I'm okay…" Ziggy muttered, withering even more in his seat under the gaze of the tall Audino.

"Come on, now," Kandice replied kindly but firmly, "Just let me look at it. I promise I won't hurt you."

Ziggy nervously glanced over at Sparks, who gave him an encouraging nod, and then finally relented and held his paw out towards Kandice. Sparks immediately winced when he did. The Buizel had sliced the side of his paw rather deeply, leaving a small but definitely noticeable gash. A few trickles of blood were still leaking out of it. Just looking at it was all Sparks needed to see that it stung pretty badly.

"Oh dear…" Kandice spoke as she gingerly held his paw to examine the wound, "That doesn't look terribly pleasant. I suppose it could have been a lot worse. Still, though, we should get this cleaned and bandaged up."

"H-huh…?"

"Come on, let's go," Kandice insisted, "My nurse's office is just through the main hall, remember? It's better to be safe than sorry, and this'll only take a couple of minutes to treat. If we go now, you can get back before your rice even gets cold!"

Ziggy didn't respond. He just wordlessly sat there, staring up at Kandice with big, wide eyes.

"C'mon, buddy," Sparks said, "I'll go with you. You'll be fine."

This seemed to snap him out of his reverie somewhat. "Uhh…Okay…" he said unsurely.

While Kandice helped Ziggy stand up, Sparks took a moment to give everybody else at the table a meaningful look. They _were_ all staring at the poor Buizel, but it was out of concern for his wellbeing. Still, though, Sparks tried to silently tell all of them to knock it off. Most of the team took the hint and went back to quiet conversations with each other, now that they had seen Ziggy would be taken care of.

Kandice, meanwhile, started to lead Ziggy towards the door to the front hall with Sparks following behind them. She had relinquished his paw, and he had gone back to holding it against his chest. As they walked, Sparks started to wonder just how much experience Ziggy had with dinnerware and cutlery. After all, a butterknife and an actual knife didn't look all that much alike.

Before long, the three of them had made it to Kandice's little first aid room hidden behind the grand staircase. It was a tad cozy, but it was well-stocked. Kandice indicated for Ziggy to take a seat in one of the chairs, which he did.

Ziggy still hadn't said a word since he had left the table. He was looking a touch nervous, but there was another emotion that Sparks couldn't quite identify.

"Here, give me your paw for a moment," Kandice said. Ziggy gingerly held out his injured paw, and Kandice held it delicately with one of her own. In her other paw, she held a damp cloth with some soap on it. She was going to clean the wound, which would probably sting a fair bit.

Ziggy winced as Kandice dabbed the cloth on his injury, but nothing more. "You're being very brave about this, Ziggy," Kandice commented.

"It's…fine…" Ziggy murmured.

Sparks sat nearby and silently watched as Kandice disinfected, cleaned and finally bandaged the wound. It was a small injury so just a tiny strip of bandage was all that was needed. Afterwards, it looked like Ziggy was wearing a white wristband.

"There! All done," Kandice said with a bright smile, her wonderful bedside manner showing through.

Ziggy simply held up his bandaged paw and stared at it for a moment. He just sat there in a reverie for a few seconds, and then finally shifted his gaze over to Kandice. The Audino continued to smile warmly, and Ziggy was silent for a few more moments.

"Th…Thank you…" he whispered.

"You're welcome, sweetheart," Kandice replied, "That's what I'm here for!"

Ziggy sat there silently, blinking a few times, and continued to stare. "I…I…" he stammered, "…Thank you…"

"Ziggy?" Sparks spoke up.

"Thank you…"

He then surprised the both of them by suddenly leaning forward and giving Kandice a hug. His paws barely fit around her larger frame but he hugged her nonetheless.

"Oh my!" Kandice exclaimed, "You're very welcome, sweetie."

Ziggy didn't say anything else. Instead, he started to cry.

"Ziggy? Sweetheart? What's wrong?" Kandice asked.

Before they knew it, the Buizel then hopped off the chair and rushed over to Sparks, giving him a hug as well. Sparks could see Ziggy's tears now, and he could feel the Buizel quivering softly in his grasp. "Thank you…" he muttered once again.

A couple minutes passed while Sparks just hugged the poor Buizel, gently patting his back. Kandice stood off to the side awkwardly, unsure of what to do. Sparks was still processing what had just happened and was trying to understand what had made Ziggy so upset.

Then, he realized that wasn't the case at all.

"Ziggy?" he spoke up. The Buizel lifted his head to look up at him, sniffling a little. "I think I see what's happening here. Does this sound right? You told me before that some bad Pokémon once lured you in with the promise of food and then…did horrible things to you."

Kandice gasped softly, covering her mouth with her paw.

"But…" Sparks continued, "No-one has done anything like this for you before, have they?" He reached down and gently held up Ziggy's bandaged paw.

Recognition seemed to appear in Kandice's eyes as well.

Ziggy didn't say anything, but his expression alone told Sparks that he was correct. Ziggy wasn't upset; he was simply overcome with emotion. Kandice's simple act of first aid was the final domino that needed to fall for Ziggy to believe that the Rescue Society truly was going to help him. Ziggy had been tricked before with food and shelter, but it was likely no-one had ever given him _care_ like this before.

"Ziggy," he spoke up once more, "While you're here, within these walls, we will take care of you. We will help you. That's the simple truth of it. Ziggy, we're here for you."

"Thank you all…s-so much…" Ziggy whispered.

"Heh… Don't mention it, buddy. Don't mention it."

* * *

"Excuse me, everyone!"

The clamour at the dining table quickly dissipated as all members of the active team stopped what they were doing and looked over towards the doorway. Sparks was standing there, with Kandice behind him.

In front of the two of them stood a young Buizel, looking incredibly shy but definitely less nervous than he had appeared before.

"Um…" he said, his voice echoing slightly through the silent room, "H-hi, everybody…"

Sparks gave him an encouraging pat on the shoulder.

"I'm…I'm Ziggy."


	7. Separation

Chapter 7 \- **Separation**

Carmen yawned, and then said, "G'mornin' Sparks…"

"Hey, sleepy boss lady," Sparks teased, earning an elbow in the side.

"There's no need to state the obvious," she replied, "Being tired comes with this job."

"Ah, well… To be fair, I'm kinda worn out myself." Sparks paused to give his limbs a good stretch. "It's been…a very interesting…couple of days…"

"You've certainly had your paws full. I presume we're finally over the first major hump, then?"

"Yeah… It's not often we have to convince a Pokémon that _this_ place is a safe place, but… I think Ziggy trusts us pretty well now."

"Mm…" Carmen rubbed the back of her neck while taking a sip from her coffee cup. "He is an interesting case, if nothing else. But, that's good to hear. I suppose that's why he's not with you right now?"

"Exactly," Sparks replied, "He's back in his room. I'm spending a day away from him. Or, well, most of the day anyway. I'm going to do other chores today and leave him on his own in his room. I'm glad he trusts me so much, but we need to sever a bit of that 'lost cub' mentality. I can't be by his side 24/7, after all. I want him to feel safe in his own room. I told him that if he needs help, he can go across the hall to Kona's room, since he's taking today off, and ask him to contact me with his badge."

"Goodness, it really is like teaching a little cub, isn't it?" Carmen remarked, "How old is he, again?"

"Not a clue," Sparks said with a shrug, "In his mid teens, or so."

"It's so hard to imagine somebody that young who doesn't know their own age…"

"I'm hoping he'll open up to me a bit more as time goes on. I get the feeling there's more to his story."

"It's difficult because…I don't think I've ever known a Pokémon to be homeless for that many years, to the point that it's all he knows."

"Me either," Sparks agreed, "It really is like we pulled an alien from another world…"

Carmen yawned once more, and then nodded. "Right. Well, the team and I are off. I trust you'll make yourself useful, then?"

"That's my job!" Sparks said with a grin.

"All right…Good luck, Sparks. With everything, I mean."

Sparks sighed softly as he watched Carmen walk off towards the morning briefing. He was silently hoping that today would go well. The first step in helping Ziggy was to help him build a sense of security, so that he had at least _some_ place to go where he could feel safe. He worried about the Buizel, who was hopefully sitting quietly back in his room and not trying to dig his way out, but Ziggy seemed to trust Kona at least a little bit. He had faith that if something did go wrong, Sparks would be made known of it.

It was the first step on a long staircase to success.

And some of the steps hadn't even been built yet.

* * *

"Knock knock!"

Danika spun around in her chair, giving her visitor a mockingly dark glare. "Who dares disturb my lair?"

"I thought you were trying to _avoid_ the stereotype of a shut-in hermit," Sparks remarked.

Danika smirked and rolled her eyes. She spun her chair back towards the pile of papers on her desk, covering up the space in front of the large computer screen. "What's up?" she said, "Is Ziggy okay?"

"He's fine. Hopefully, anyway. He's spending the day alone in his room."

"Ah, that poor kid… Hope things work out for him."

Sparks groaned softly. "'Let me take you to have dinner with all these friendly faces', and then he gets a freaking _knife injury_…"

Danika shook her head. "But, it all worked out in the end, right?"

"Sort of, yeah…" Sparks then stepped further into the room and walked up behind her chair. "Still working on that stuff?"

"Ugh…" Danika groaned, "'Working' on it implies making headway."

Sparks frowned. "So, you still can't identify it? At all?"

Danika glanced up over her shoulder at the Raichu. "Well, you know, technically I'm not supposed to tell you _any_thing about this project now. You're not working with me anymore, after all."

Sparks arched an eyebrow. "Say what…?"

Danika shrugged. "That's the policy of the group we're working with on this."

"What do they expect me to do? Just suddenly forget everything I was working on for the better part of two months?"

"I guess?"

"The world is dumb sometimes…"

Sparks leaned on the back of the chair and watched Danika's computer screen for a few moments. The Rescue Society was one of the few organizations to receive a computer that wasn't a governmental body or a university. It was quite fascinating new technology, and everybody in the guild was pleased that Danika had picked up on it so quickly. Right now she was studying a database file from the library. There were images of some chemical symbols, some math stuff, and other things Sparks didn't really understand.

Danika then sighed. "This is another dead end. Forget this." She then closed the window, revealing something else on the screen.

"…What is…?" Sparks murmured.

"I was bored, so I doodled something."

"What are you, five?" Sparks asked with a snicker. His gaze then wandered over to the side. Resting on the ground next to the computer desk, tucked away in an inconspicuous corner, was a small but heavy-duty safe. Sparks was one of the few privy to what was locked inside.

"I'm still upset it didn't give me super powers," Sparks quipped.

"Pff…" Danika scoffed, "You're lucky it didn't send you to the hospital or something!"

"I'm starting to wonder if it's just going to become one of life's greatest unsolved mysteries at this point…"

"I mean, the only reason Carmen approved of letting you take care of Ziggy was that we weren't making any headway with this dumb thing."

"I suppose…" After a moment of silence, Sparks' gaze then shifted over to the other side of the desk. "What's all _that_?" he asked, having just taken notice of the huge stack of folders next to the screen."

"Hm? Oh, _that_…" Danika replied with a hint of dread, "That…is my next project."

"Carmen gave you a next project already?"

"Well, it's for whenever I'm done with you-know-what, but…I think I'm pretty close to done with that anyway, since I'm pretty much out of leads…"

"What is it?"

Danika groaned softly. "It's a bunch of old, old, _old_ files from the city's archives. Some of it from the regional archives too. When the virtual databases were all set up, all of Radiant City's newer stuff was uploaded immediately, but now the city wants all this old crap up there too. So…I'm the lucky one who gets to manually type and transfer all of this stuff onto the city's database."

"Oh Arceus have mercy…" Sparks said, "That…doesn't sound fun."

"It's _not_," Danika replied flatly.

"Oh dear…"

"Any dream I had of ever seeing the sun again just got pushed back by quite a bit."

"Aw, c'mon. That's hyperbole and you know it."

"I only _hope_ it is…"

Another moment of silence filled the room. Danika started reading over some papers on her desk, adjusting her glasses every so often.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" Danika spoke up.

"Go ahead."

"That kid…What are you gonna do with him?"

"You mean Ziggy…? Well, I'm not completely sure. Gonna take it day by day."

Danika turned to look at him. "I know you've worked with a lot of homeless Pokémon before, and you usually get them set up with affordable housing in the city."

Sparks nodded.

"What about him, though?"

The Raichu tilted his head and asked, "What do you mean?"

"I mean, assuming things go well and he's ready to live on his own…in _this_ city, though? Sparks, shiny Pokémon don't live in Radiant City."

Sparks skewed his lips. It was true that Radiant City had a virtually non-existent, population of shiny Pokémon. There were no laws or stigmas against them living here, but the fact was that shiny Pokémon usually found better lives living in smaller towns and villages, so that's where most of them were.

"I see your point…" Sparks commented, "I don't know how we would go about housing him in a different city that's outside of our jurisdiction. We might have to hand him over to somebody else to do that." He frowned. "But, that's the thing. It took so much effort just to get him to feel comfortable _here_, and to trust _this_ small group of Pokémon."

"True…"

"I hate to admit it, but…The end goal isn't exactly clear here."

"Hmm… It does feel like, at some point, we're going to have to give him to somebody else one way or another. Based on what little I've seen of him, though, I can almost guarantee that would be a bad idea."

Sparks nodded sagely. "That's why I can only take it day by day…"

"I guess you're right. Man, that poor kid…"

"His story's not a happy one, and I don't even have all of it because he's too shy to say everything."

After Ziggy had returned from his trip to the nurse's office yesterday, Ziggy had managed to work up the courage to tell his story at the dinner table. He had recounted everything he had told Sparks beforehand, and everybody had respectfully refrained from prodding him with questions.

"Well… Just let me know if there's anything I can do…" Danika remarked after a few moments.

"Thanks, Danika. And right back at you. Let me know if you need help with…cataloguing or whatever."

"I probably will need an extra paw, but I won't bother you if you're busy with Ziggy."

"It doesn't hurt to ask anyway, though. Just let me know!"

* * *

Sparks spent the following hours wandering around the guild and poking his head in door after door, seeing if anybody needed help with anything. A few alumni asked him to carry some stuff, offer an opinion on something, or to go fetch food from Liz. Simple odds and ends chores that Sparks was happy to do. Lunch passed by, he stepped just beyond the gate to get a sandwich from the shop across the street from the guild, and then he went right back to wandering.

By the time it was 2 o'clock in the afternoon, Sparks felt impressed that Ziggy hadn't panicked yet and called for him. It _was_ just the simple task of sitting alone in his room, but Sparks knew enough about the Buizel not to diminish such an accomplishment. It was yet another small step forward.

As the afternoon wore on, Sparks' wayward paws led him back to the main hall, where he lightly knocked three times on the door nestled behind the staircase.

"Come in," Kandice proclaimed from the other side. When Sparks opened the door and stepped into the nurse's office, the Audino smiled brightly at him. "Good afternoon, Sparks," she greeted him.

"Hi, Kandice," he replied, "How're you?"

"I'm just fine, thank you. How are things going on your end?"

Sparks knew she was referring to Ziggy. "…Slowly," he eventually settled on answering.

"I see," Kandice said with a nod, "It has been quite a while since I have seen you personally like this. You have been a busy Raichu."

"Heh… Yeah, Danika and I didn't expect that her 'project' would take so long… and then Ziggy fell into my lap."

Kandice nodded silently, and then made her way over to a desk near the rear of the room. She picked up a small notebook and flipped it open to a bookmarked page. "How are things with you?" she asked.

"Fine," he answered, "It's just been a while since I checked in with you, so I thought I would…"

"Mhm. I appreciate it, Sparks. Oftentimes no news is good news…" She scribbled a few things down in the notebook. "Are you still taking your medication?"

"Not as often as before," he replied, "It doesn't feel like I need it as much."

"Okay. Well, that's fine. As long as you're not being negligent."

"No, of course not."

"Nothing to report, though? No unexpected symptoms, no aggravation of your condition…?"

Sparks shook his head.

"Okay, well that all sounds good. Keep up the good work, Sparks. You continue to impress me every day. You got right back up when life knocked you down."

"Aw, c'mon," Sparks said dismissively, "I didn't get _right_ back up. It still hurts."

"Oh of course. I know that. Anyway, feel free to bump up the dosage if you feel like you need it, even if it's just for one day. Just don't go over the recommended daily dosage and you'll be fine."

"Thanks, Kandice. I appreciate it."

"Any day, Sparks. My door is always open."

"Heh…" Sparks chuckled, "You spoil us…"

Kandice simply shrugged, and then put the notebook back on her desk. "Where is Ziggy, anyhow?"

Sparks explained to her where the Buizel was for the day.

"He seems like a sweet kid," the Audino commented, "Underneath all that anxiety, I mean… I hope he warms up to me enough that I can give him a medical checkup soon. For a Pokémon that used to be homeless, that'll be important for him."

Sparks nodded, but then added, "He seems relatively healthy, though. He was malnourished, but besides that he seemed fine."

"That's astounding, honestly… Especially since, as you told me, he would cover himself in mud."

"I guess he managed to learn how to take care of himself, if nothing else…" Sparks said evenly, "He came from a smaller village, so he must not have been sleeping in dingy alleys until he came to Radiant City. What _I_ wonder is what he did when he got sick. Did he just tough it out? I wonder if he ever needed more serious treatment for something…"

"Well," Kandice said, "Water-Types are more naturally resistant to a lot of the common illnesses we all deal with. Water-Types rarely catch the common cold, for example."

"Lucky Duckletts…"

"Every Type has its pros and cons, medical-wise."

Sparks playfully huffed. "He's got a natural affinity for speed, too. Malnourishment barely slowed him down. He told me that's where he got his nickname from."

"I wonder what his real name is."

"I wonder if he even _knows_ it," Sparks countered.

"I wonder if he even _has one_…"

The two fell silent as a sombre atmosphere began to cloud the room. Sparks sighed as he thought about the young Buizel, hopefully sitting quietly in his room. For a moment, the Raichu felt the urge to go and check on him to make sure he was okay.

"I hope you can help him, Sparks…"

"Me too…" Sparks said as he stood up and began to make his way towards the door. "I'll talk to you later, Kandice. Thanks for seeing me."

"Where're you off to?"

"I…" Sparks paused for a moment, and then said, "I feel like I should go check on him."

"I thought the point of this exercise was to lessen his dependence on you."

"It is. I know, it's just…I'm worried about him. I'm worried I might've given him too much too soon."

"You do what you feel needs to be done, Sparks. Come back any time," she replied. A moment later, right before Sparks was out the door, she called out to him. "Oh! By the way! Rico told me about that stunt you pulled on the grass hills when you were first chasing Ziggy."

Sparks leaned back through the doorframe, locking eyes with a very stern-looking Audino.

"Don't go breaking your neck out there, Sparks," she scolded him.

"Hey," Sparks replied indignantly, "Don't go treating me like an old 'mon…"

"You're not 'old' yet, Sparks, but you are old_er_. Just…please be careful out there."

The Raichu nodded softly. "I will, Kandice. I will…"

With that, Sparks exited Kandice's office and started to head back to the dorms. It wasn't a long journey, as all he had to do was pass through the common room. Javier and Lupe were there, having apparently come back early from their jobs, so he gave them both a friendly wave.

Sparks was really hoping that he was being worried about nothing. It might have seemed paranoid to get this anxious after having left his charge alone for such a relatively short amount of time. Sparks knew, though, that this wasn't an overreaction. He had hope that Ziggy was taking strides forward, but he also knew the reality of the situation. Ziggy was still a flight risk.

The Raichu quickly entered the dorms and approached the doorway to what had become Ziggy's de facto room. The door had been left unlocked, so as to not make Ziggy feel like he was trapped, but Sparks still respected Ziggy's privacy and knocked on the door.

"Ziggy?" he called out, though not too loudly, making his presence known by the sound of his voice, "Ziggy, how're you doing in there? Everything all right?"

Sparks waited for a moment, but there was no response.

A chill ran up his spine, along with a very familiar sense of dread. He tried to shake those negative thoughts away and convinced himself that he was jumping to conclusions. It was possible that Ziggy had fallen asleep for whatever reason. Nothing was certain just yet, one way or another.

When Sparks knocked again but there was still no response, he decided to quietly open the door himself and peek inside. "Ziggy…?" The Raichu discretely poked his head through the doorway, his eyes scanning the entire room.

It was empty.

"Ziggy?" Sparks called out in a louder voice as he stepped fully into the room. He moved a few pillows aside, but there was nobody hiding under or behind anything. The room was empty. Ziggy wasn't there. "Ziggy, where are you?" he shouted. Sparks could feel panic approaching, but again tried to keep it at bay. Ziggy might be in the washroom, right?

"Ziggy!" Sparks called out, sounding like he was searching for a lost cub. He couldn't have run away _again_, could he? Sparks had been sure they had gotten past that point by now. He thought he had finally convinced Ziggy that the Society was a safe place to stay.

Had he really failed? Again…?

"Sparks?"

The Raichu's ears perked up. It wasn't Ziggy's voice, but it did catch his attention. He stepped back out into the hallway of the dorms. "Hello?" he replied.

"We're in here, Sparks,"

Sparks turned towards the source of the voice, and a sense of relief washed over him when he found himself looking at the closed door of Kona's room. He let out a sigh of relief, kicking himself for worrying so easily over nothing. With a shake of his head, Sparks walked over to the door and used his badge to open it.

* * *

Earlier…

* * *

It was just before noon when Kona the Dewott, alone and reading in his room, was alerted to the sound of knocking on his door. A few moments later, the door opened to reveal Kona with a friendly smile. "Hello!" he greeted.

"Um…H-hi…" Ziggy replied meekly. The Buizel was breathing a silent sigh of relief. It had indeed been the friendly Dewott on the other side of the door, and not something else. Ziggy couldn't count the number of _other_ things he had expected to find when Kona's door opened. He stood there for a moment, twiddling his paws and feeling self-conscious. He was trying to remain calm, yet his tail was still tucked between his legs. He was focusing mostly on trying to keep his breathing under control.

"Everything okay?"

The Dewott's question brought him back to his senses, and Ziggy looked him in the eyes. Kona was just slightly taller than him, so he didn't have to crane his neck to look upwards like he did when talking to Sparks. "Uhh, no…" he replied, "Well, I mean…Sort of?" Ziggy started glancing around again, looking to see if anybody else was walking in the hallway.

"Do you need me to call Sparks?" Kona asked, and Ziggy recalled what had been told to him earlier. If he had started to panic, Kona would use his badge to contact Sparks and call him back.

It took Ziggy a moment to formulate a response. "…No, I…don't think so…" he said, "I just…just…"

Kona studied him for a moment, and then gave him a calming smile. "Would you like to come in?"

"Huh…?"

"In here, in my room," Kona said, gesturing to the room behind him, "Did you want to just hang out with me?"

Ziggy blinked a few times. "W…Would that be okay?"

"Sure!" Kona replied cheerily, "Absolutely! Feel free to come visit me any time, Ziggy."

"Uh, okay…Thanks…"

Kona then stepped to the side, and Ziggy hesitantly made his way through the doorway and into the room. Like he had felt before when entering the guild, and again when entering Sparks' room, there was an overwhelming feeling that he was stepping into somewhere where he didn't belong. Somewhere he wasn't allowed to be.

Ziggy tried to shake this feeling by taking a look at the Dewott's room. It was similar to Sparks' room in a lot of ways. There was a desk with writing materials and other odds and ends scattered upon it, as well as many photographs of Kona standing with various Pokémon. There weren't nearly as many photos as in Sparks' room. Rather, the defining characteristic of Kona's room was the many short bookshelves that lined the walls.

"Have a seat anywhere you like," Kona said to him as he closed the door.

"Okay…" Ziggy glanced around and saw a pillow on the ground, and next to it was a book with a bookmark sticking out of it. That must have been where Kona had been sitting, so Ziggy decided to sit somewhere else. He eventually ended up sitting down on the floor a few feet away.

"So, what's up?" Kona asked him, sitting back down on the pillow, "Was it getting lonely all by yourself in your room?"

Ziggy glanced at him. "Uh, no…" he replied, "No, I'm used to being lonely. I was just…getting nervous…"

Kona tilted his head. "Nervous? About what?"

_About what? How much time have you got? I could list 'what's until the middle of the night…_ Ziggy thought to himself. "I…don't really know," he eventually answered.

"Just nervous energy?" Kona asked.

"Huh?"

"Feeling nervous for no reason in particular?"

Ziggy frowned, looking away. "I guess…? I just…Ngh, I dunno…"

"Well," Kona said as he reached over to pat Ziggy on the back, "You're got nothing to worry about. I'm sure that's been said to you about a million times, but it's true. Sparks isn't going anywhere. He'll be back later in the day. So…Y'know, just try to relax."

"I can't relax…" Ziggy remarked.

"Why not?"

"I dunno, I just can't. I can never relax. I'm not a Pokémon that gets to relax. I've just…I've always been…" Ziggy paused and took in a few breaths. "I'm…not used to being…indoors…"

Now, Kona was frowning. "It really was that bad, huh? A silly part of me was hoping you were exaggerating…"

"This isn't…_normal_ for me…" Ziggy said, trying to keep the whine out of his voice, "It's like…My whole life, I was playing a life or death game, day and night, and then it just…_stops_."

"I suppose that would be rather jarring…"

"I…I trust you guys now…" Ziggy admitted, "I really do, but…I still can't relax."

"Hmm…"

The Buizel sighed, jumbled thoughts filling his mind and twisting his stomach. In some ways, it still felt like he was in a dream. It wasn't too much of a stretch to believe it. After all, he'd had plenty of dreams like this before, usually followed by waking up and bawling his eyes out.

Ever since the big, friendly Raichu had found him, it felt like his life was being pulled in a different direction. It was sudden and so very frightening, and Ziggy still didn't know _which_ direction he was being pulled in. It was hard to believe that his stay here, no matter how good it was, would end well.

His optimism had died long ago.

"Well, Ziggy?" Kona spoke up, "Everybody here has been spending all of this time talking about your past and all the terrible stuff in your life…Why don't we talk about something else?"

Ziggy looked up at him. "Huh? Something else? Like what?"

"Like, what's your favourite colour?"

The Buizel blinked once. "Uhh…I dunno, I never really gave it much thought." After a pause, he said, "Blue? I guess?"

Kona brightened up. "Really? Blue's my favourite too!"

"Yeah…?"

"That's great. See, now we have something in common. Maybe I can talk to Carmen and get something blue in your room, like curtains or something. What else do you like? Is there something you like to do, like a hobby or something? Maybe a favourite food?"

"Uhh…" Ziggy fidgeted a little. He was being put on the spot by these questions, which made him feel a little anxious when trying to find an answer. "I guess I like running?" Once he had given the answer, though, he found he wasn't as nervous.

"Sparks told me you were really fast."

"Kinda, yeah…" Ziggy replied with a shrug, "It's why I'm 'Ziggy'…"

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"I'm called Ziggy because I run fast. Pokémon called me that because I, y'know, zig and zag and nobody can catch me…"

"Oh…Oh, I see." Kona nodded and then asked, "Who gave you that name?"

"Everybody calls me that."

"No, I mean did you have friends when you were younger who started the nickname? Something like that?"

Ziggy's look immediately soured and his frown got bigger. "No," he replied flatly, "Who'd be friends with somebody like me?"

"Aw, c'mon Ziggy. You already know that's not true, 'cus you've got Sparks! And me! Everybody here seems to like you."

The Buizel just remained silent and didn't respond to that.

Kona cleared his throat after a brief awkward silence. "Well, anyway, I'm still curious. That name had to have come from somewhere right?"

"Uhh…" Ziggy skewed his lips as he thought about it, "I… I think I was in some kind of school for a _tiny_ bit of time. Way, way, _way_ back when I was a little cub. Maybe an orphanage school or somethin'? I dunno. The other kids there musta come up with it."

"Oh…" Kona replied, "But…you like it, right? You don't mind everybody calling you 'Ziggy'?"

"It's fine. I don't care."

"Do you have a given name? Like, an actual one?"

Ziggy shrugged. "Maybe?"

Kona fell silent again, biting his lip and glancing away. Ziggy could see that the Dewott was trying his best to keep the conversation lighthearted, but was struggling. With a sigh, Ziggy realized that he had come in here anxious and was now depressed instead. Was that better or worse?

"Well," Kona finally said, breaking the silence after a few minutes, "I suppose that makes sense. Sparks was telling me that Carmen thought you were 'well-spoken' for a Pokémon in your circumstances, but even just going to school for a little bit when you can barely remember helps."

"I taught myself how to read…" Ziggy commented, "Learned how to speak by listening to others."

"That's a good thing, then! It means you're smart, Ziggy."

"I'm not smart," Ziggy said, "I don't know anything about math or science or anything like that!"

Kona shook his head. "There's a difference between being smart and being intelligent. All I meant was that, even if you're a little behind in your knowledge, you clearly have a fairly big brain in that head. Not every Pokémon in your circumstances could teach themselves to read."

"…You think so…?"

"Sure!"

Ziggy hesitated, feeling a strange mix of emotions. It felt weird that the Dewott would put so much faith into him, a Pokémon he barely knew. Kona was…believing in him. It should have felt nice but, instead, it just felt wrong. Incorrect. Like Kona was making a mistake. Still, though, it was nice that he had at least said it.

"You're…a very nice Pokémon," Ziggy commented.

"Aw, well thank you! You're very nice too."

"When you gave me that chocolate bar a few days ago… Nobody's ever done anything nice like that to me, y'know, just for no reason. I'm…not used to Pokémon just doing something nice…and not asking for anything in return."

"Ah, it's nothing to make a big deal about," Kona said with a smile, "That's just what friends do."

"I'm pretty sure I've…never had a friend before."

"Well, you've got at least two now. Probably a couple more."

Ziggy silently considered this. Friends? The concept was almost foreign to him. His whole life had been nothing but solitude and hiding from the ire of others. It would be nice to consider somebody else a friend, but for someone to think of _him_ as a friend? That was something Ziggy found hard to believe.

Maybe it wasn't impossible, though…

"You…really think we're friends?" Ziggy whispered.

"Sure! Why not?" Kona replied jovially, "You haven't really given me any reason to think otherwise."

"Uhh…Okay…" Ziggy said hesitantly, trying to figure out the emotions this stirred up, "Um…Then, uh…What do you do?"

"Hm?"

"I-I mean…Y'know, around here? What kind of…stuff do you do?"

"My work at the Society, you mean?" Kona said, "I've been here for a couple of years. I'm sort of mid rank, although Carmen doesn't much care for rankings. I don't have a team partner so I either work alone or team up with whoever wants my help. I like to think of myself as being on everybody's team!"

"Team?" Ziggy murmured, "You mean the…Uh, what did he call it? The active team?"

Kona nodded. "Yes, I'm part of that, but Pokémon in guilds like this often form two- or three-Pokémon teams and do most of their work together."

Ziggy straightened up a little as he recalled something. "Oh, right. That Eevee and Riolu were a team. Um…Terry, and…uh…"

"Rico. His name's Enrico but he prefers just 'Rico'."

"Right. Rico."

"You'll find more Pokémon making teams in guilds in smaller towns. We're such a big organization here that our work spreads out in so many directions, so we all work wherever we're needed. Rico and Terry are a team mostly because they knew each other beforehand and they joined together."

Ziggy nodded in understanding.

"Anyway, you were asking about me," Kona continued, "I'll do pretty much anything to help out, if I can. There's not a lot I'll say 'no' to. On a typical day, I'm either picking a job off of the board or Carmen asks me to help somebody else out with something else."

"I see… So, you go out there? In the city?"

Kona nodded. "Yup. Most days I'm out there doing something or other. Today's just my day off. Last week I helped a family set up a new trampoline in their back yard, and not long ago I helped a cub who was stuck up in a tree."

"Really…?" Ziggy's eyes widened.

"It wasn't _too_ high up, but the little scamp had climbed higher than he realized and was too scared to get down. His dad was an Aggron. Not exactly designed for climbing trees, so I brought a ladder and got him down."

"Oh wow…"

"Yeah, he was pretty happy to get down safely. Such an adorable smile on his face!"

"That's…really cool," Ziggy spoke softly, "It's really cool what you all do…"

Kona shrugged. "Everybody needs help at some point…We're here to help."

"But…what if you can't help?"

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"Like…" Ziggy frowned, struggling for words for a moment, "What if…even though you tried…you couldn't get him down out of the tree? Like, if he was too high up, your ladder didn't reach, and…"

"Oh, well I can call for backup with my badge. Someone on the active team might be able to help out, or someone else who's on duty that day. I've done that from time to time. Sometimes we bite off a bit more than we can chew."

"But…What if nobody could get him down? What if…nobody, not you or anyone working here, could get him down?"

"Well," Kona replied, "that's why it's important to have friends. Even the Rescue Society as an organization has friends." He started counting off on his paw. "We work with the government, law enforcement, homeless shelters, mental health facilities… Radiant City is a _huge_ place, there's bound to be somebody out there who can help with whatever it was. Sometimes we, the Rescue Society, just need to find them."

Ziggy didn't say anything and just glanced away.

"If we can't reach a solution, we find a path _to_ the solution," Kona stated.

"Mm…"

"I can tell why you're asking this, Ziggy," Kona said in a softer tone, making the Buizel look up at him in surprise, "I know nobody here has an exact answer for you yet, but you just have to relax. Don't think about the future so much, okay? If you focus on the future, then you can't focus on the here and the now."

"I…I guess…" Ziggy murmured, "I dunno…"

"You're feeling a bit better now, though. Right? Not as panicked as before."

Ziggy thought about it, and realized that Kona was right. He nodded.

"That's good. You can just hang out here all day if you want to, Ziggy. I don't mind. We can keep talking, or I can find a book for you maybe?"

"Can I…? Are you sure? Isn't…this your day off?"

Kona smiled sweetly. "I don't mind. I'm happy to help you relax if that's what you need. So just, y'know, sit back and try to relax. Everything'll be okay."

* * *

"Hey…Kona?"

A couple quiet hours had passed, and Ziggy was still sitting with Kona in the Dewott's room. They had talked some more, Kona had told some stories about his previous work at the guild, and at one point Ziggy had just been content to sit in silence while Kona read for a bit. It was honestly surprising to him to see how calming it felt to simply be with Kona in his room. He hadn't felt this relaxed in a long, long time.

"Hm? What's up?" Kona said, answering Ziggy's query.

Ziggy, however, simply grimaced and glanced away. The question was sitting there on his tongue, but he just couldn't make his mouth open to let it out. He felt his stomach begin to twist and he considered just saying 'nothing, never mind.'

"What is it, Ziggy? Go ahead. You can ask me anything."

"Um…"

Silence filled the room for an indeterminate amount of time as Ziggy struggled with his nerves. Kona was looking at him patiently, waiting for him to speak, but wasn't saying anything or being pushy about it. Eventually, Ziggy finally found the courage to speak up.

"Do you really not care…that my fur's yellow…?"

Ziggy nervously looked over at Kona to see what reaction his question had garnered. The Dewott looked surprised by the question for a moment, but a second later he simply shrugged and said, "Nope."

"_Really_?"

"Really, Ziggy. I really don't care."

"But…" The Buizel whined softly and looked away for a moment before saying, "But, why not?"

"Because there's no reason to, Ziggy," Kona answered, "Really, it doesn't matter. I mean, what is it supposed to mean? What does having golden fur mean about who you are as a Pokémon?"

"It means I'm a freak," Ziggy replied with a frown.

"No. No it doesn't. You're not a freak, you're a Buizel. You've got all the Buizel characteristics. You can use Water attacks, you can hold your breath for a long time, you can use that…um, thing on your neck to float, and you can swirl your tails to swim really fast. That's still a Buizel."

Ziggy was silent for a moment before speaking up again. "But…doesn't it bother you? Don't I look _weird_ to you?"

"Not really, no." After a pause, Kona spoke again in a softer tone. "Is…that how others treat you?"

Instead of answering, Ziggy just grimaced.

"Mm…There's unfortunately a lot of…undeserved hate for ACP's. They're so rare that Pokémon don't understand, and Pokémon get scared of what they don't understand. There is a lot of venom out there about shiny Pokémon, and I wish it wasn't like that, but…Ziggy, you know not _every_body is like that."

"It feels that way…" Ziggy sighed.

"It's probably very rough. I don't know for sure, I'm not an ACP myself, but I've worked with a few of them. Not all shinies are in as rough of a spot as you, though. A lot of them have jobs, a lot of them have families and friends. Being a shiny doesn't automatically mean your life has to be the worst it can possibly be. It's not impossible for things to get better."

"Mnn…" Ziggy grumbled, not feeling very uplifted by Kona's words.

"It's just…not as easy here in the city."

"Yeah…I wish I'd never come here…"

"Well…Then you wouldn't have met us."

Ziggy lifted his head to look at the Dewott, who was trying to give him an uplifting smile. "I guess…" he said. Another few minutes of gentle silence filled the room. Ziggy sat there for a while, ruminating with his thoughts. Even despite Kona's kind words, something still just didn't feel right. It felt like there was something wrong that needed to be addressed, but nobody knew what it was.

As the Buizel looked over at Kona again, still just as calm and friendly as ever, he asked his question one more time. "You…_really_ don't care?"

"No, Ziggy. Nobody here does. Not me, not Sparks, not Carmen…nobody."

"Then…Why does everybody else care so much…?" Ziggy whimpered, feeling his frown get heavier, "Why do they all point? And stare? And shout? A-and…"

"I…don't know, Ziggy. I really don't," Kona replied sadly, "It doesn't make sense. It's not right. Really, it's not right for Pokémon to assume they know something about you just because you have golden fur… Some of them are scared, some of them are just followers who go with what others think, and…some Pokémon are just jerks."

"I-it's not fair…" Ziggy said in a quivering voice, "I didn't ask to be like this… I _wish_ I could have orange fur. I wish I could just be normal!"

"Ziggy…"

"I…I _hate_ it…It's like…When I cover myself in mud Pokémon still stare at me like I'm a weirdo, because I _am_ being a weirdo covered in mud…but it's still _not as bad_! Whenever somebody sees me without the mud…they'll stare and shout. They'll say really mean things…tell me to go away, get away from their kids even though I'm nowhere near, say I don't belong…"

"I'm sorry, Ziggy…I'm so sorry you have to go through that…" Kona spoke softly.

"I…don't want to be like this," Ziggy said as he started to cry, "I don't want to be a freak anymore…" The Buizel shut his eyes and sniffled, feeling a heavy pain in his chest. Years of living as a freak on the street had steeled him to the mean ways Pokémon would treat him, but the hurt never truly went away. Now, sitting in this quiet room with this nice Dewott had made him feel vulnerable, and all of the hurt was starting to spill out.

Ziggy gasped when he suddenly felt Kona reach over and give him a hug. "It's okay, Ziggy," Kona said, "You're okay. You're safe here. You're not a freak."

"K…Kona…" Ziggy whimpered. He felt himself teetering on the edge of a full-blown meltdown. He almost relented so he could just lean into the hug and cry, but the two were distracted by a sudden sound.

"Ziggy?"

There was the sound of a door opening.

"Ziggy, where are you?"

The Buizel had been quite startled by the unexpected voice that could be heard even through the closed door of Kona's room. It only took him a moment to recognize it, though, and he quickly started to calm down. "That's…"

"Ziggy!"

"Sparks?" Kona called out to him, keeping his paws wrapped tightly around Ziggy as he did so.

"…Hello?"

"We're in here, Sparks."

A few heavy pawsteps could be heard. "Kona?"

"It's open, come on in."

Ziggy glanced over his shoulder as he heard the sound of the door latch opening. A moment later, the door swung inward and revealed a slightly frantic-looking Raichu on the other side. Ziggy and Sparks locked eyes, and Ziggy immediately felt a calming sensation throughout his whole body.

"Ziggy! There you are," Sparks said, relief in his voice, "I saw your empty room and I got worried…

"S-sorry…" Ziggy said, a tearful waver still in his voice.

Sparks shook his head and entered the room, closing the door behind him. "No, no need to apologize. I'm just relieved that you're safe." He then walked over and sat on the ground next to the hugging pair. "What's going on? Why're you in here?"

Ziggy wanted to answer for himself, but his emotions were still a little muddled so eventually Kona answered for him. "Ziggy was feeling nervous being by himself, so he's been hanging out in here with me for the last couple of hours. He's okay. Things just got a bit emotional here…"

"Oh. Well, that's fine. Fine that you came over here, I mean," Sparks commented, "Whatever helps you feel more comfortable. But, what's on your mind right now?"

Ziggy no longer felt tears in his eyes. Instead he just felt glum, resting his chin morosely on Kona's shoulder. "I'm a freak…" he mumbled.

"Ziggy…" Sparks said in a distinctly 'I thought we went over this' voice.

"He was just asking why…" Kona said, but then trailed off for a moment. "…Why most other Pokémon, uh… treat ACP's so badly. Why they always stare."

"Oh, I see…"

"They always stare…" Ziggy grumbled, "Everybody. They all stare. With those big, wide eyes. 'What the heck is that freaky thing?' I hate it."

The room was silent for a moment. Kona kept hugging Ziggy, though the Buizel didn't mind. He wasn't used to physical contact like this, but he was feeling too depressed to protest it.

Eventually, Sparks spoke up. "Ziggy…" he said in a thoughtful manner, "Do you remember when you met Danika?"

Both Kona and Ziggy turned to look at him. "Huh? Danika?" Ziggy spoke.

Sparks nodded. "Mhm. That day when I brought you up to her office."

"I, uh… Sure, I guess."

"What was the first thing you noticed about her?"

Ziggy knew the answer right away. "Her glasses."

"Right," Sparks said with another nod, "You took notice of Danika's glasses, to the point where she made a joke about you staring at them."

"H-huh…?" Ziggy muttered, "I was…?"

"Yes, Ziggy. You were absolutely staring at Danika's glasses. They were something different about her. Something that made her stand out, and it drew your eye."

"Oh…I-I guess I was…" Ziggy trailed off for a moment. "B-but, that's not the same…thing…"

"Isn't it?"

"Pokémon stare at me because I'm a freak, and then they yell things at me and…I didn't think Danika was a freak. N-not at all! I wasn't gonna shout at her! I didn't think her glasses were _wrong_ or anything! I was just…just…" Ziggy skewed his lips as confusion began to settle in. "I…I don't know…"

Sparks leaned in closer to him. Kona released him from the hug, and Sparks placed a paw gently on his shoulder and looked into his eyes. "Buddy, it's normal for your eyes to be drawn to something that's different. It's a natural response in our bodies. Our eyes notice something that's different than 'normal', and it sets off flags in our brain telling us that it _might_ be a sign of danger. So we look, to assess the situation. But we look, we see there's no danger, and after a moment we stop and just move on.

"Ziggy, I know that if you walk out onto the street just as you are, then pretty much everybody on the street is gonna notice you and stare at you. Some of them might say or do something hurtful because they're idiots, but not _every_body will react like that. A lot of Pokémon who look at you, or even stare at you, are just looking because you caught their eye. A lot of them will probably just ignore you and move on before long."

Ziggy was wordlessly look up at him, a contemplative look in his eye.

"If you see someone staring at you, just remember Danika's glasses. Most of them won't hurt you. I'm sure a lot of them don't even have any bad thoughts about you."

"Y…Yeah…?" Ziggy murmured meekly.

"Y'know…I'll admit, Ziggy. Even I was staring at you for a couple seconds after you first washed off the mud. Even I'm guilty of it."

"…I guess…"

"I just don't want you to be afraid of being_ visible_, Ziggy. Obviously I'm not gonna ask you to go parade down main street, but I still see you jump a little bit every time somebody enters a room. You're wound up way too tightly."

"Mm…" Ziggy glanced away for a moment, looking a little melancholy. After a moment, though, he looked back at Sparks and gave him a timid little half-smile. "Thanks, Sparks…" he said, "I'll…I'll try. I'll do my best…"

Sparks smiled back at him. "That's all I can ask for."

"You're…way _way_ the nicest Pokémon I've ever met…in my whole life. I…It doesn't feel like I deserve you and all the help you're giving me…Sometimes I just…I dunno… You're perfect, Sparks."

"Ah…" Sparks gently shook his head. "Thank you, Ziggy, but I'm not perfect. Believe me, I am definitely not perfect."

"What do you mean?"

"I'll…" For a moment, the Raichu looked troubled, which was highly unusual in Ziggy's eyes. "I'll tell you another time…"

"Oh…Okay…"

"All right," Sparks then spoke as he started to stand up, "I'm glad to see you're doing fine. Are you okay to hang out here with Kona some more? There's still some errands I'd like to get done."

Ziggy turned back to look at Kona, who smiled and nodded encouragingly. "Uh…Y-yeah, that's fine," he answered Sparks.

"Sounds good…" Sparks, now standing, then walked over to Ziggy and tousled the fur on his head. "We're gonna get you through this, okay? It's not gonna be easy for either of us, but we're gonna make it work. We've both gotta work hard, though, all right? There's a better life for you out there, I know it, but I need you to work with me in order to get there."

Ziggy looked up at Sparks, conflicting emotions swirling in his stomach again. Sparks' words were encouraging and his optimistic attitude was kind of infectious, but the reality of his words weighed down on his shoulders. "Okay…"

"I'll see you again at dinner time."

"Mhm. Um…Thanks for coming, Sparks. It was nice of you."

"Not a problem, Ziggy. Not a problem…"


	8. Good Days and Bad Days

Chapter 8 \- **Good Days and Bad Days**

"All right! Let's do this! You guys ready?"

The excited Riolu looked back to his two companions. To his right, his long-time friend and companion Terry, and to his left the older and larger Sparks.

"Ready!" Terry chirped.

"Toss 'er down!" Sparks proclaimed.

The three were standing in the middle of the park somewhere near the southeast of the city. The park encompassed land that had once been owned by the Pokémon who first founded the town way back in the day, but now it was city property that had been turned into a greenspace. There were information signs and plaques here and there that shared the history of this location with park-goers, but the main attraction was an old, traditional-style water well that was at the top of a small hill. While it was dry now, with the city installing a drain at the bottom so it wouldn't flood, the old stone foundation held strong around the cylindrical hole dug deep into the ground.

The well was where the three Pokémon were located, working together to rescue a Lillipup cub that had fallen down into it. There were fences and warning signs surrounding the well, but unfortunately the young Lillipup had simply been too curious and was now trapped at the bottom.

News of this incident had reached the guild only minutes into the morning briefing. Carmen had immediately assigned Terry and Rico to handle the rescue, and the two of them had requested the assistance of Sparks to help with the heavy lifting.

The Raichu watched as Rico tossed down a rope, which had been fastened into a loop that the Lillipup could climb into and easily tighten on his own. The two younger alumni had crafted the rope together, working quickly but making sure not to be careless. The well was too narrow to fit a ladder down, so the rope would have to do, but Sparks was impressed by the two's craftwork. Rico then fed the other end of the rope over the metal bar above the well which used to hold the well's bucket. Using it as a makeshift pulley, he then brought the rope over to his two companions.

Sparks picked up the end of the rope and started tying it around his waist. He would act as the anchor, due to him being the heaviest. "All right. Make sure he's tied in securely and let's get him out," he said.

Rico was back over at the well's edge. "You see what to do?" he called down, "Slide into the loop and pull it so it's tight around your waist!"

"Jason! Be careful, sweetie!" shouted a female Herdier, who was standing nearby with an extremely worried look.

"Miss Christine," Terry said to her, "I know you're worried about your son, but please make sure to stand back. We need space so we can make this work."

"Oh goodness…" Christine muttered, "I should have been watching him more closely…"

"Yup! You got it!" Rico called out. He had turned on his badge's light so he could see down into the well more clearly, "Nice and tight! Hold onto it with your paws and your teeth as well, just to make sure! We'll start pulling you up!"

Rico then turned off his badge, hopped back down, and ran over towards Terry. "Okay! We're ready!" he said, picking up the rope in his paws.

Sparks also picked up his end of the rope, holding it firm between himself and Rico. With the rope taut, Terry could stand up on his hind legs and grab the rope with his paws too. The trio took a few paces back until the entire rope was taut.

"Okay! Three…two…one…_Pull!_"

All three Pokémon tugged on the rope as hard as they could. After a moment of resistance, the rope started to move. The Lillpup had been lifted off of the bottom.

"Pull! Pull!" Rico continued to shout the command, and every time he did the trio would all pull on the rope some more. Slowly but surely, they worked their way backwards along the lawn, pulling more and more of the rope up out of the well.

Sparks held his ground, grunting softly with exertion as he gripped the rope tightly and kept his hind paws locked firmly on the ground. His job was to make sure the Lillipup wouldn't fall back down if the other two lost their grip.

Rico and Terry weren't slouching, though. It was definitely more of a struggle for them, but they were the ones doing most of the pulling while Sparks remained as the anchor. Rico kept shouting his command, and Terry growled with fierce determination as he and the Riolu pulled as hard as they could. It was like an epic battle of tug-o-war, and the opponent was gravity.

"Keep going…!" Rico grunted, "We're almost there!"

"You okay in there, Jason?" Terry called out.

"Y-yeah…!" a tiny voice echoed from within the well.

"Hold tight, Terry! We can do this!" Rico shouted.

"You too! Let's do this!"

"Keep it steady, Sparks!"

"It's under control," Sparks replied, "Just get him outta there."

Indeed, Sparks did his best impression of a heavy boulder, since it was pretty much his job to be one. The Riolu and Eevee continued to pull the rope up, inch by agonizing inch, and Sparks kept gathering the rope to keep it taut. The two smaller Pokémon poured all of their strength into their task, the sounds of exertion increasing in volume with every passing second.

"I see him!" Terry exclaimed, "He's up!"

Sparks looked up at the well and saw two small brown paws reaching up over the edge. "Don't stop! Keep going until he's all the way up."

"Jason!" Christine shouted.

"Stay back until he's out, Miss Christine!" Terry commanded.

"C'mon, little buddy!" Rico shouted to the Lillipup, "Just a bit more! Try to pull yourself up!"

The brutal tug-o-war continued for a few more tense seconds. Terry and Rico growled fiercely as they tried to pull the rope up its last few precious inches, while Jason's paws scrambled frantically to try and grab the edge.

"I…I got it…!" the Lillipup cried out as his paws finally found purchase. At long last, the poor cub's head was visible. His bottom half was still hanging over the edge, though, so he wasn't quite out of the woods yet. Rico and Terry kept pulling, Sparks kept holding strong, and Jason tried frantically to pull his hind legs up over the well's rim.

Then suddenly, without warning, the Lillipup was out. When he finally got one of his hind legs up and shifted his weight upwards, all tension in the rope vanished and the force of momentum reared its ugly head. Jason went tumbling over the edge, landing and rolling onto the grass, while the three guildmembers all ended up careening backwards. Sparks landed painfully on his rump, earning an irritated groan from the Raichu.

After wincing and sitting up straight, he saw that Christine had finally run over towards Jason and swept him up into a crushingly tight hug. She was crying tears of relief, finally reunited with her child.

Sparks then heard cheering, followed by laughter. He looked off to the side and found Terry and Rico on the ground nearby, lying in a heap on top of one another. It looked as if Rico had fallen right back into Terry and the two had careened back onto the grass. The two were jumbled together in a tangle of limbs, but they were laughing as if it were the funniest thing in the world.

"We did it!" Terry cheered.

"That was awesome!" Rico exclaimed, "Woo-hoo!"

The two then tried to untangle themselves and sit up, but ended up falling down onto the lawn and laughing even harder. They looked like two cubs having the time of their lives. It was hard to believe they were both only 18 years old.

"Good work, you two," Sparks said as he stood up, "A successful mission."

"Yeah! We saved him!" Terry said, "Look at how happy they are!"

Everybody glanced over to see that the Herdier was still hugging and nuzzling her son. "I'm glad we could help them," Rico commented, "You did great, Terry! Great work!"

"Aw, I couldn't have done it without you! You're a lot stronger than I am! Without you in front, I wouldn't've even been able to pull it!"

"And that's why we make such a great team!" Rico chuckled, and after a pause he glanced up at the Pokémon that was standing nearby. "Er, I mean of course you did great too, Sparks. We definitely couldn't have done this without you! Thanks for coming along!"

Sparks laughed at their antics. "I could've been replaced with a big rock. I just happened to be easier to move out here."

"Woo…!" Terry said, letting out a breath of relief, "That was awesome, dude! I think that's my favourite mission we've done so far."

"Yeah…That was pretty great. And, even though the kid was in danger, it was kinda fun too!" Rico added, "Is that weird to say?"

"I know what you mean," Terry said, giving the Riolu a playful swat.

"Speaking of which," Sparks interjected, "You two should probably go make sure they're both all right." He gestured towards the mother and son, still hugging.

"Oh right!" Rico exclaimed. He and Terry then finally managed to untangle each other and get to their paws. They then quickly made their way over to Jason and Christine.

"Hey!" Terry greeted them, "Is everything all right? Jason, are you hurt at all?"

"Oh, goodness!" Christine babbled suddenly, once she was aware of the two's presence, "You wonderful Pokémon! I can't thank you enough for rescuing my little Jay. I was so scared. I was going to panic so hard, and…I-I-I don't even know what to say. Words can't express my gratitude…"

"Not to worry, miss," Rico said, "We're just happy to help! That's what we do!"

"Jason!" Christine said, "Jason, say 'thank you' to the wonderful rescuers…a-and promise all of us that you'll never do anything like that ever again!"

The young Lillipup looked up from within his mother's vice-like embrace. He looked shy and remorseful, a little shaken by the experience, but otherwise unharmed. "Th…Thank you," he said in a meek voice, "I-I'm really sorry…"

"Hey, buddy…" Terry said with a calming smile, "We're just glad you're okay, okay?"

"Again," Christine spoke up, "I cannot thank you enough. I was so worried, but…you got here so fast! The sun was barely up and I was told you were already on your way! The guild is so wonderful. Please tell your boss or whoever that I am so grateful for their hard work."

"Gosh, Miss," Terry said, "You're making us blush. Please! We're just happy to help."

"Here…Hold on for one moment," Christine said. She then finally released Jason from her grip, but only so that she could reach back for a small pink fashionable bag that was resting across her back. She used her paws to carefully open it, revealing that it was actually her purse. "Here," she said, pulling out a couple of banknotes, "Please, take this. It's a token of my gratitude. Your services are worth so much more, but I'm afraid this is all I can give you."

Christine then swiftly handed the banknotes over to the Riolu, who was slightly caught off-guard by the exchange, and then immediately turned her attention back to Jason. "Come on, sweetheart. Let's get you back home so we can get you cleaned up and fed. You must be starving, you poor baby!" Then, before anyone could say another word, she picked up Jason by the scruff of his neck, gracefully jumped over the fence, and was off.

"Well, that was abrupt," Sparks commented with a chuckle.

"She seemed really happy," Terry said, "I'm so glad we could help them both. Seeing her smile makes all the aches and pains worth it. Right, Rico?"

The Eevee elbowed Rico in the side, but the Riolu didn't respond. He was just sitting there, staring transfixed at the banknotes in his paws.

"Rico?" Terry spoke up in concern.

"She…" Rico murmured, "She gave us…fifteen hundred Poké…"

"_What?!_"

Terry proceeded to bully his way into Rico's personal space to get a better look at the wad of cash they had been given. Rico fanned out the hundred Poké bills for him to see and count, and soon Terry had that same blank expression of awe.

"Fifteen…_hundred_…!" Rico murmured in disbelief.

"That…Sh-she must've made a mistake," Terry said, "She gave you too much by accident…right?"

"I don't think so," Sparks spoke up, causing them both to look in his direction.

"What do you mean…?" Rico asked.

"That was your first rescue, wasn't it?" Sparks asked, "As in, your first time rescuing a live Pokémon who was in danger?" When they nodded he continued and said, "Well, rescues usually come with a large gratuity. Then, it was a cub, so that's usually a bit more, _plus_ the client was a worried mother… Adds up to one _very_ thankful, happy family."

Rico and Terry sat there for a moment just blinking. "But…" Rico eventually spoke up, "We can't…take this much from her…"

"Oh, trust me," Sparks said, "I can tell you from experience, trying to give any of that money back to her will be ten times as hard as getting her son out of that well. She was _happy_ to give that to you for a job well done, and for rescuing her son."

Terry and Rico then turned to look at one another, and shared a moment of silence. Eventually, they finally started to smile in excitement. "Holy moly…!" Rico said, "Did we seriously, really just earn 1500 Poké from a job?"

"We did!" Terry exclaimed, "That's incredible!"

"I…I'm speechless!" Rico laughed, "I didn't even get a chance to thank her properly! This is insane!"

"I thought only the super-duper tough elite jobs that we're way unqualified for would pay this much!"

"Heh heh… Nice work, you two," Sparks said, "That's gonna make Carmen smile too."

"Wow!" Rico said, counting the bills once more just to be sure, "I mean, even after the guild takes its cut, that's still 250 Poké each!"

"…Wait, what?" Sparks said, tilting his head, "I think your math's off…"

"No," Rico replied, "Half of this is 750, and then split three ways that's 250 each."

"No, no, no, no," Sparks retorted, shaking his head, "That 750 is all yours. You two split it between yourselves."

"What?" Rico blurted out in disbelief, "Sparks, are you nuts?"

"Possibly. But no, those are your earnings. Keep 'em."

"Sparks, you were part of this mission too," Terry spoke up, "I mean, we couldn't have done it without you."

The Raichu simply shook his head again. "This was your mission. You two were assigned this mission, and you two were in charge of it. It was your idea to bring me along for extra help, but you two made all of the important decisions and got the job done."

"Sparks…" Rico said, starting to argue again.

"Rico…"

"Sparks, we can't…"

"Rico, you absolutely can. You two did a great job today. You _earned_ that 750! I don't need any of it, it's fine."

A moment of silence fell upon the glade. Rico and Terry looked at one another, both looking like they were deep in thought. When Rico turned back to Sparks, he simply asked, "Are you sure?"

"Just take it, you boneheads!" Sparks said with a laugh.

"Wow… Thanks, Sparks," Rico said with a grateful smile. He then looked down at the wad of cash once more and his grin grew even wider. It wasn't a greedy grin, but one filled with pride. Sparks could see that it wasn't so much the amount of money he was receiving, but the satisfaction of a job well done.

"Terry…" Rico said, turning to the Eevee, "We just made 750 bucks!" Well, perhaps a little because of how much money they were receiving.

"That's awesome!" Terry cheered, "And the day's not even half over. We can go do another job!"

"Oh my gosh! You're right!"

"Good job, partner! Good job!" Terry then leaned in and engulfed Rico in a big hug, which the Riolu was quite happy to reciprocate. The two teammates started to laugh once again, happiness filling their voices.

Meanwhile, Sparks stretched his limbs and glanced off into the distance. Now that this job was done, he was left wondering what to do with the next few hours of his day. A few thoughts occurred to him, mostly concerning what kind of lunch he would like to eat.

Unfortunately, the answer was decided a moment later when his badge illuminated and a female's voice emitted from it. "Sparks?"

The Raichu tapped the badge and answered, "I'm here."

"Sparks, you gotta get back to the guild," said Lupe, the owner of the voice on the other end, "The quicker, the better."

"Why? What's wrong?"

"It's Ziggy."

"Oh…" Sparks said, his shoulders slumping a little.

"He's panicking. I think it's best if you come back for him."

"Yeah, absolutely. We're done out here, so I'll head right back. Tell Ziggy I'll be there in five to ten minutes."

"Got it. Thanks, Sparks."

"Don't mention it, Lupe," Sparks said, and then his badge dimmed. Once his conversation with the Vulpix was over, Sparks let out a huge sigh.

It had been at least two weeks since Sparks had first encountered the little muddy Buizel on the street. Ziggy had been staying with them in the guild since then, relatively calm and comfortable but ultimately running out the clock on his one-month limit. Sparks had been doing his best to rehabilitate the Buizel and get him on _some_ kind of path towards a better life, but he was starting to think he was hitting a wall. The guild wasn't meant to act as a bomb shelter to protect Ziggy from the horrors of the outside world. As much as Sparks liked the little guy, both he and the guild itself had other matters to deal with.

The good news was that Ziggy was finally comfortable living within the guild's walls. For the most part, he was also on good terms with everybody on the active team and no longer got nervous in their presence. If Ziggy was sitting in the dorms or the common room, and his only company was members of the active team, then he could relax and not feel too stressed out. Ziggy still jumped a little when somebody entered a room, but if he saw that it was somebody he knew then he would calm right back down.

Unfortunately, that was the only major step forward Ziggy had taken. If Ziggy was asked to leave the building in any way, even just out onto the grounds or into the backyard, or to interact with anybody outside of the active team, then he regressed right back to the panicked, terrified Buizel that Sparks had first met back at the beginning. Even just asking Ziggy to leave the common room to travel to other parts _within_ the Guild set him on the verge of panic.

Sparks had been trying to make any progress that he possibly could. It was not always the case that one month was enough time to fully help a client who needed to stay within the guild, and in those cases it would be determined if any other groups or businesses could help them further. Usually this resulted in assistance from the homeless shelters, once the Pokémon could get back onto steady paws and would be ready to start working their way _out_ of the homeless shelter.

Under no circumstances did Sparks ever want to send Ziggy to a homeless shelter.

So, he had been trying somewhat desperately to find another avenue towards success. Perhaps Ziggy could reach a level of mental stability where he could find a nice, caring roommate to stay with temporarily. Maybe he could find some sort of work he would be comfortable doing. Or, if nothing else, Ziggy could perhaps be handed over to a mental health facility who could work with him and perhaps, hopefully, even house him.

The fact that Sparks was currently being called back to deal with a badly panicking Ziggy, however, was proof enough that things were not going well.

* * *

"Hi, Sparks," Lupe greeted as the Raichu stepped through the side entrance of the guild.

"Hello, Lupe. Thanks for calling me…"

"Not a problem. Glad you could come back."

Sparks walked into the common room. Looking around, he saw that the Vulpix was the only other occupant. "So… What happened?"

"I heard him crying in the bathroom," Lupe said with a vexed expression, "I went in and got him and then let him into his room. He's in there now."

"And the career counsellor?"

"She left."

Sparks sighed and shook his head. As part of his attempts to help Ziggy towards a better life, he had set up a meeting with a career counsellor. The idea was for her and Ziggy to discuss his likes and his skills to possibly suggest an avenue of employment that he would be comfortable doing. The meeting with the counsellor wasn't intended to find Ziggy a job, but simply a direction.

As the days had gone by, Sparks had tried to warm Ziggy up to the idea of interacting with others besides members of the guild. He was coexisting rather peacefully with most of the guild by this point, and so could clearly see that there did exist Pokémon in this world who didn't care about his fur colour. But with the deadline approaching, Sparks hoped that Ziggy could relax enough to make a rapport with someone like he had done with the Raichu himself.

Sparks had been there in the morning when the career counsellor had arrived. She was a very sweet and friendly Whimsicott, and Sparks had sat down with the two of them to help break the ice. Ziggy had been extremely nervous upon first meeting her, but he seemed at least somewhat calmed when Sparks took his leave to go help Rico and Terry. The Whimsicott had indeed stared at Ziggy for an extra second or two, but besides that had neither said nor done anything to indicate she had a problem with him being a shiny.

"I'll go talk to him, then…" Sparks said grimly.

"Sparks? Are you all right?"

Sparks groaned in frustration and pinched the bridge of his muzzle. "No, Lupe. I'm not. I'm…very concerned about him, but at the same time, I'm a little irked that he can't even seem to take a little step forward. I like him, I really do, but it's like I'm raising a newborn cub here…"

Lupe frowned. "I can see he's trying, at least…"

"I know he is… and even though it's frustrating, I still _do_ want to help him. It's just…I don't know if, logistically, I'll be able to."

"He is a bit of a full plate, yes…"

"Do _not_ let him hear you say that."

"Of course, of course…"

Sparks sighed once more and gazed off blankly into the distance for a moment. "I…just don't know what to do. I hate that feeling. I feel…helpless. I feel like I can't do what I'm meant to do… There was a long time where I felt like that every day, and that's not a time in my life I want to go back to…"

"You won't, Sparks," Lupe said reassuringly, "You _have_ already helped him a little bit. I'd hazard a guess that he hasn't felt this _secure_ in a long, long time. He's got a place to live, even if it is just temporary, and you've shown him that not the _entire_ world is out to get him."

"I guess…" Spark murmured, shaking his head, "I… I just wish I could see him smile…"

"Smile?"

"He's never smiled once since I met him. Never."

Lupe paused for a moment and then said, "I'm sure he will…Give it time."

Sparks could only shrug in response. After he collected his thoughts, he thanked Lupe again for calling him in, and then made his way over to the dorms. Before long, he was standing outside of the door to Ziggy's temporary room. With each passing day, Sparks was reminded more and more of just how 'temporary' it was. He had a feeling the Buizel felt the same way.

"Ziggy?" he called out, giving the door a few gentle knocks.

"S…Sparks…?"

"Can I come in, buddy?"

"Uh huh…"

Sparks held his badge up to the door and it unlocked. He opened it gingerly, peeking into the room to find Ziggy sitting on the edge of his bed. The Buizel wore a thousand-yard stare. He didn't look up as Sparks entered the room. At the very least, it didn't seem like he had been crying.

"What happened, Zig?" Sparks said as he made his way over to the bed, sitting down on it next to the Buizel.

"I'm sorry…"

"You don't need to apologize. I just want to know what happened."

"She kept looking at me weird…"

Sparks skewed his lips as he gave the Buizel a slightly exasperated look. "Weird how?"

"Weird like everybody looks at me…"

"Mm…" Sparks let out a heavy sigh.

"She was nice when you were there with us, but…I don't think she liked me very much."

Sparks closed his eyes and took a few slow breaths. He had a feeling that what Ziggy was describing was only something that happened within the Buizel's troubled mind, but he chose not to say anything.

"As soon as you left, I…I just…" Ziggy stammered.

"Started to panic?" Sparks finished.

"Y-yeah… She asked questions and… I couldn't answer them. I couldn't think. She just kept looking at me, and I knew what she was thinking, and sometimes she would give me a weird look when I answered and…"

"I see…"

"I got so worried I was…gonna say the wrong thing…or get in trouble, or I don't know…! I just couldn't do it, and I know she just thought I was some freak, and…"

Sparks sighed once more. "Ziggy, she was a very nice Whimsicott. She works with troubled youths all the time. She just…That wouldn't happen, Ziggy."

"I think she got frustrated too…"

"…Frustrated?"

"With my answers. Like she didn't know what to do with me…"

The Raichu paused. That sounded a little less like hyperbole, especially if Ziggy hadn't been thinking straight at the time.

"I hated that so much…" Ziggy whimpered.

"Tell me the truth," Sparks said, "Did it make you uncomfortable because she was somebody from outside of the guild. From 'the outside world'?"

Ziggy finally turned and looked at him, sporting a vulnerable, cub-like frown. "Y-yeah…"

"And you don't want anything to do with the outside world. You're happy and safe in here, in a place you can finally say you feel happy and safe in after all this time."

"Yeah…" Ziggy glanced down ashamedly.

"Aw, buddy…" Sparks reached over and patted Ziggy on his shoulder. He could feel his earlier frustration starting to simmer away. "I wish I could let you stay here. That's the honest truth. I think it would be the best thing for you, but it's just not something we can do…"

"I know…" Ziggy bemoaned.

"Then we could do things differently, work really slowly but surely… You're a lot less nervous than when you first showed up here, you know. I really hoped that me finding some really nice, sweet Pokémon to come in and meet with you would be okay. I picked out these Pokémon specifically because of how kind they were. But every time…something happens and you end up panicking."

"Mm…"

"Just because you think she's looking at you weird?"

"Well, y-yeah…" Ziggy muttered, but then looked up at Sparks again with a more serious expression. "But then…th-then this other Pokémon came into the room! And…a-and…"

"Hm? 'Other Pokémon'?"

"Yeah… It was just me and the worker, alone in the common room talking about stuff…and this big huge Fearow came into the room, and he was so big and scary… He looked lost or something, but then he came right over to us and said he had a package for 'Raz'. The worker said she didn't work here, so the Fearow turned to me. 'Where's Raz? Where can I find Raz? You know who Raz is, right?' I was so scared I could barely say anything, but he asked if I worked here, and I said I don't work here but right now I live here…

"I shouldn't've said that… He said if I live here, I _must_ know who Raz is. Somebody sitting in this room must know who Raz is, because he works here, in this part of the building. That's what he was told. I had no idea what he was talking about, and he just got angrier and started yelling. The Whimsicott eventually made him go away, but… I just… I didn't know what to…"

Ziggy trailed off into quiet whimpering, looking like he was on the verge of tears once again. Sparks looked down at him with a crestfallen expression.

"Buddy…" he said, causing Ziggy to look up at him, "_I'm_ Raz."

Ziggy blinked. "…Wha?"

"Raz is me," Sparks repeated, "That's my real name; Raz. Sparks is just a nickname."

"…Oh…"

Sparks frowned. "Have I seriously never told you that? Good grief, we've known each other for weeks and I never brought it up. Oh, Zig, I'm sorry. Everybody just calls me Sparks so I don't even think about it anymore…"

"It's okay…" Ziggy mumbled glumly, "It's not your fault…"

"It is, Ziggy. Telling someone your _name_ is an important part of building a relationship, and I messed that up."

"Well, I don't even have a name…"

"Oh," Sparks said dismissively, "Ziggy's your name. It might not be whatever your legal name was, but for all intents and purposes that's your name. It's what you go by, and it's how you're identified. I still use 'Raz' from time to time, especially when I'm dealing with more important matters, so…"

"Whatever…"

An uncomfortable silence is what followed that conversation. The room was quiet for a few minutes as Ziggy moped and Sparks tried to figure out what to say next. He was starting to wonder if bringing Ziggy to the Society was the right move in the first place. Perhaps, after getting Ziggy off the street, Sparks should have handed him over to another organization immediately, one that didn't have a definitive stay limit.

As the Raichu glanced over at Ziggy, though, he decided that he had indeed made the right choice. Through the unusual circumstances of how they met one another, Ziggy had truly come to trust him. The fact that Sparks could sit this close to him, in the room where he felt the safest, and have him be completely content and comfortable spoke volumes. If Ziggy's care had been put in the paws of somebody else, things might not have gone so well.

However, that didn't make Sparks' task any easier.

"So, what do you want to do now?" Sparks asked him.

"Huh…? M-me?"

"I want to know what _you_ want, Ziggy. We can give you all the help in the world, but it's only gonna matter if it's something you want. Do you _want_ to find a job? Get a home? Get help for your anxiety? Move somewhere quieter?"

Ziggy fidgeted uncomfortably and said, "I, uh…I don't know…"

"Maybe the best thing for you is to just get you out of this city. It's just not the best place for you right now…"

"N-no."

Sparks glanced down at him. "No?"

"No, I…I want to stay here."

Sighing, Sparks said, "I know you want to live in here, but I'm afraid it's just not something you can do."

"No, no," Ziggy interrupted, "I mean…I want to stay _here_. In the city…"

"In Radiant City…?" Sparks blinked in confusion. "Uh…Why, exactly?"

"Because I…" Ziggy trailed off for a moment, fidgeting even more. He stammered for a bit before finally giving an answer. "I…don't want to leave all of you… If I go to another city, then…I'll never see any of you again…"

"Us…? You mean, us at the guild?"

"Mhm…I don't…_want_ to go stay somewhere else in the city, but if I did…at least I'd still be able to see you…"

Sparks was silent for a moment. "Oh…I see," he said, processing this information.

"You're all really nice to me…" Ziggy said sadly, "and…some of you are…friends."

The Raichu glanced away, feeling his heart begin to crack. Damn it, that was such a sweet thing to say, but it only reaffirmed Sparks' belief that here in the guild was the best place for him to stay in the long term. He couldn't send Ziggy away from the first friends he'd probably made in his whole life. It had been such a struggle to earn Ziggy's trust for the whole active team, and now that it was here this was the perfect environment to finally, truly help the poor Buizel.

Except, a couple weeks wasn't enough time.

"Y'know, Zig?" he spoke up, "I'll be honest. I don't wanna lose you as a friend either. Your story breaks my heart, Ziggy, and I want to help so badly…It hurts that I…don't know if I'll be able to."

Ziggy frowned. "I…know you're trying."

"I know you are too."

"I'm just too much of a mess…"

Sparks sighed again. "You're not a 'mess', Ziggy. You have some really bad social anxiety and have a hard time meeting strangers. That's not a problem specifically for shiny Pokémon."

"It isn't…?"

"Oh no, of course not. There's lots of Pokémon out there who get worried or even panic if they have to talk to a stranger. It's just a thing that some Pokémon really, really dislike, or it scares them. That's a thing we can help you with, in one way or another…It's just unfortunate that most of the ways we can help you require us to involve strangers…"

"Mmm…" Ziggy whined softly. It was clear from his body language alone that Ziggy was agreeing wholeheartedly. He did _not_ want to spend the day with any more 'workers' or the like.

"But, it's not all bad," Sparks commented, "You and Kona have spent quite a bit of time together…"

"Yeah…"

For the last week or so, Ziggy had been spending a lot of his evenings with Kona, either in the Dewott's room or on one of the couches in the common room. As far as Sparks was aware, they didn't do much more than talk with one another, but Ziggy seemed comfortable around Kona for sure.

"Maybe Kona can help you work on some stuff, like meeting with workers. The only problem is that he's busy during the day doing jobs… Do you think the meeting with the Whimsicott might have gone better if Kona had been there?"

"Um… I dunno, maybe…?"

"And you've been eating dinner with us in the common room every day. That's something you probably never considered yourself doing before, right? Now you can sit and eat with a fairly large group and even make small talk sometimes."

"Mhm…"

"Ziggy, you have the skills to improve yourself. I know it's really hard, but it is something you can do. It's just that us here in the guild, we're the easy challenge. You can do the same with others out there, in the big wide world, but it just might be a little harder…"

Ziggy didn't have a response for that. He wore a neutral expression, neither seeming to agree nor disagree with Sparks' statements.

Silence fell upon the room again as the two Pokémon simply sat for a while without saying anything. Sparks glanced around at the noticeably empty room. It had been furnished with essentials for Ziggy's stay, with a bed, a dresser, a mirror, a desk and some throw pillows for sitting on the floor. Compared to every other room in the dorms, though, it was threadbare.

Eventually, Sparks started to feel his stomach rumbling. It was getting close to lunchtime. He decided it was time to go out and grab a bite to eat, so he spent a few minutes asking Ziggy what he wanted for lunch. When the matter of food had been decided, Sparks got up off the bed, intending to say goodbye and depart from the room.

He found himself paused on the spot, though. A few thoughts ran through his head, and he glanced back at Ziggy for a moment. He considered everything that had been said during this little get together, and thought about what was in store for the both of them in the future.

Eventually, though, he came to a firm decision. "Hey, Ziggy?"

The Buizel glanced up at him questioningly.

"Listen, buddy. I'm going to see if I can extend your stay here," he said with a somewhat determined expression, "I truly do believe that is the best thing for you right now. I'll talk with Carmen and see what we can do, but… I just have to tell you, Ziggy, that I can't promise anything. I'll do my best, but…y'know, it's not something that normally happens."

Despite Sparks' disclaimer, Ziggy looked hesitantly hopeful upon hearing this. "R-really…? You will?"

"All I can do is try…"

"…Thank you, Sparks," Ziggy said demurely.

Sparks nodded and flashed the Buizel a quick smile. "All right. I'll go get us some food, and then we can see what the rest of the day has in store for us, okay?"

"Okay."

"We'll figure it out, Zig. We'll figure it out…"

* * *

Ziggy stood in his temporary room, facing the door that led to the hallway outside.

He'd been standing there for 15 minutes.

There were a thousand uncomfortable feelings crawling inside of him, making his stomach turn and his pulse quicken. Warning bells ringing in his head, though that was nothing new. Warning bells were always ringing in his head. Every instinct in his body was telling him to turn around, crawl under the covers, and hide.

Why, though? Even he couldn't answer that question completely. All he intended to do was go out and sit in the common room.

Sparks had errands to run after lunch and wouldn't be back until an hour after dinner. The Raichu had briefly talked to Carmen about the length of his stay, but Carmen was a very busy Braixen and could only say at the moment that she would give it some thought. A more definitive answer wouldn't come until later. As it stood, nothing much was happening.

Ziggy groaned softly, frustrated with himself. He knew that, from the outside looking in, it looked like he wasn't putting in any effort to anything and was just running away from all of his problems. The truth was that Ziggy really was trying. He didn't want to live his life like this anymore. He wanted things to change. As Sparks was gone and hadn't left anything for him to do, Ziggy had the initiative to try and push himself to do something outside of his comfort zone.

It was just so terrifying, though.

He just planned to go out, walk into the common room, and sit quietly at the table. There were likely to be one or two Pokémon in there for one reason or another. It was the weekend, and many of the active team took either Saturdays or Sundays off. The occupants of that room were likely to be any of 13 particular Pokémon he had met, all of whom were friendly to him and didn't hate him.

But what if that wasn't the case? What if one of them was in there working with another Pokémon on something. A client? The last time Ziggy had encountered a client within that room, it had gone horribly. There were other Pokémon working in this building too. What if someone was out there he hadn't met? What if, for some reason, there was a stranger out there? Another mean, angry Clefable who wanted to punch his lights out?

Ziggy groaned and tapped his head with his paw, frustrated with himself. That's what always happened. His mind started asking a thousand questions and went off the rails within seconds. It took very little time before he immediately jumped to the worst possible scenario. Why did his stupid brain have to be like that? Ziggy knew that he had been through many hardships, most of which at the paws of other Pokémon, and there was no denying that, but he also knew that not every experience had to be bad. His time here with Sparks and his friends had shown him that. So, why was he so terrified of such a simple little task as opening the dang door and walking out into the big room?

As the Buizel reached out a paw to try opening the door again, Ziggy glanced down and looked at his paw. The smooth coat of garishly bright golden fur stood out to his eye. The answer was right there before him. Justification was in plain view.

"Why…?" Ziggy whispered, feeling a surge of depression in the pit of his stomach, "Why did you have to be gold…?"

The urge to turn around and crawl back into bed returned, stronger than ever, and Ziggy just stood there feeling his will to fight the urge diminishing. Heavy storm clouds hovered over his head for a couple of minutes, leaving Ziggy to just stand there alone with his thoughts. Things were harder when Sparks wasn't around. Ziggy wasn't afraid to admit that he missed the Raichu already and wished he were here right now.

Finally, as Ziggy thought about Sparks and his unbelievably friendly personality, he managed to work some of his courage back up. Sparks was always encouraging him, always helping him, even when he wasn't making any progress. Sparks would want him to go and sit in the common room.

With a deep, shuddering breath, Ziggy stepped forward and pushed the door open. He was going to do this. This was a simple, easy task that anybody could do. All he had to do was do it. If things went wrong, he could run back to his room; it wasn't too far away.

Ziggy peeked out into the dorm hallway. He could already feel the eyes of imaginary shiny-haters hiding in the shadows, but nobody was actually in the hallway. He nervously stepped out, took a breath to calm himself, and then walked towards the nearby door to the common room. Ziggy knew that if he hesitated at that door, he would just go through everything he'd gone through with his room's door moments ago. So, without stopping, he opened the door and stepped through.

The room was quiet. It was quite empty and calm. Nobody was tossing buckets of orange paint at him or anything. It was just him standing there in front of the doorway, feeling awkward and out of place but unharmed, and the room's two occupants. Over at the dining table, sitting across from one another, were Rico and Jules.

The Sylveon, who had been facing away from him upon his entry, turned his head over his shoulder to regard the newcomer. Rico tilted his head so he could see past Jules' head and also looked over at Ziggy.

"H-" Ziggy started to say, but his voice caught in his throat and he coughed. He cleared his throat and then murmured, "Hi…"

Rico smiled and gave him a quick wave. "Hi!"

"What's up, Buizel boy?" Jules said with a grin.

Ziggy gulped. "Umm…" He fidgeted on the spot for a moment, feeling slightly caught off guard by Jules' nickname. "Can I…Uh…Can I sit…? …Down?"

Rico and Jules exchanged a confused look for a moment. "Sit down…here?" Rico asked, pointing to the dining table.

"Yeah…I guess… I mean, if it's…if I can, or…"

"Sure, you can sit with us," Rico said, cutting off Ziggy's rambling, "We were just shootin' the breeze."

"That's one way of putting it," Jules said with a snicker.

Ziggy felt a sense of relief and then made his way over to the table. Jules and Rico were sitting across from one another, So Ziggy didn't know which one he was supposed to sit next to. He stewed over it for a moment before deciding to just sit next to the Pokémon he was nearest to. That happened to be Jules.

"Buoy, oh buoy! Look who it is," Jules said, turning to face him.

"What…?" Ziggy murmured, experiencing a brief spike of panic as he wondered if he had done something wrong. Was he not supposed to sit next to Jules?

"I said… I said 'buoy', y'know?" the Sylveon said, "Like…buoy. It's a joke."

"A… joke?" Ziggy said, feeling his heartrate go back down.

"Yeah, 'cus like… Ah, never mind."

"Oh…Okay…"

"Don't listen to him," Rico said dismissively from across the table, "He's been a smartass all morning."

"Well, at least the best part of me is the smart part!" Jules said with a grin.

"Mmhm…" Rico replied in an unimpressed tone.

"Feh…I dunno why I waste my best material on you guys," Jules chuckled.

"You don't have material. You just say whatever dumb crap goes in your head," Rico replied with a mocking grin.

Ziggy was nervously glancing between the two. "Are…A-are you two fighting…?" he whispered.

"Are we?" Jules said, "I'm probably winning then."

"Shut up, Jules," Rico interrupted, and then addressed Ziggy. "No, we're just messin' with each other. We're friends so, y'know, we poke fun."

"Oh…"

Rico gave the Sylveon one more wry look and then cleared his throat. "So, uh, how're you?" he asked Ziggy, "Doin' okay?"

"I, uh…I guess. I dunno…"

"Ah, well I guess that's good news," Rico said with a nod, "I heard about what happened with that idiot delivery Pokémon. Sorry that had to happen…"

Ziggy rubbed his shoulder and glanced away. "Y-yeah…"

"I still can't believe nobody brought up Sparks' real name… That nickname has stuck to us like glue."

"'Cus he don't got the '_Raz_zle dazzle' no more," Jules quipped.

"Pfff… He's got more 'razzle dazzle' than you. What did you even do today? You delivered one package across town, came back for lunch and called it a day?"

"Hey, that package was heavy!" Jules replied indignantly, "And I got another job lined up for tonight. I'm gonna have to skip dinner with all of you, so y'know I'll probably starve."

Rico snickered and rolled his eyes. "You're lucky you're cute, otherwise we wouldn't keep you around."

"'_Cute_'?!" Jules exclaimed, "Buddy, buy a thesaurus and pick _any_ other word. I'm handsome as f-"

"Fine, fine," Rico said, holding up his paws defensively, "You're a drop-dead handsome devil and any Pokémon would be lucky to have you. That stroke your ego enough?"

"Possibly…" Jules replied in a fake haughty tone.

"It is possible to have a normal conversation with you?"

Now it was Jules' turn to roll his eyes. "Ahh, you're a lot of fun," he said to Rico with a chuckle. He then turned to Ziggy and said, "Quit eyein' me, buddy. I don't swing that way, sorry to say."

Ziggy had been watching the two Pokémon's back and forth with a mystified expression, but jumped suddenly when he was addressed. "Huh? Wh-what?" he blurted out, "I- What did I do…?!"

Jules held up a paw and laughed. "I'm joking, dude. Sorry, didn't mean to scare ya."

"Ziggy," Rico spoke up, "It's pretty safe to assume that anything Jules says is a joke."

The Buizel gave them both a curious look. "What does…? What do you mean, 'swing'…?" he murmured quietly.

"I'm just teasin', buddy. Relax," Jules said.

Ziggy frowned. He found that a lot of Pokémon lately were telling him to 'relax'. It was such an easy thing for them to say, as if it were an easy thing for him to do.

After a moment of rather awkward silence, Jules started to stand up. "All right. Well, I'll get out of you guys' fur. I got stuff to do before my _job_ later tonight that I'm doing and not being lazy," he said, putting emphasis on the last part while looking at Rico.

"Yeah, yeah," Rico said dismissively.

"Talk to ya later, punk," he said to Rico with a snicker. He then turned to Ziggy and said, "You too, bud. See ya around." And, with that, the Sylveon promptly turned and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him as he went.

"Oof," Rico said, "He can be a bit much, I know. He really is nice, though. He's a good friend and a great ally."

"Mm…" Ziggy said, having no strong feelings one way or another.

"He's just a smartass. Nine times out of ten if he says something mean or angry, he's not being real."

Ziggy nodded absentmindedly, and then turned to face Rico completely, who had sidled along his side of the table so that he was now directly across from him. "So," Rico spoke up, "Sparks isn't here today, huh?"

"No," Ziggy replied, "He said he'd come back at dinnertime…"

"Gotta admit, it's kinda weird seein' you without him. Haha…"

Ziggy bit his lip and didn't reply.

"Uh… Is this something he asked you to do? Come out of your room by yourself?"

"No," Ziggy shook his head, "I…Well, I just thought… I thought it would help…?"

"Ah," Rico said in understanding, "Well, sure, every little step counts. I betcha Sparks has fed you that line like a thousand times, but it's true." He then leaned on his wrist and gazed off to the side. "Yeah, it's a bit weird for me too. Terry took a job that he had to do by himself today. Me an' him hardly ever do missions without each other. I just did a bit of helping out sorting at the library, then I'm gonna train a bit with Angelo later."

"Who's Angelo…?"

"He's the guild's combat instructor. He's a Mienshao and he trains all guild members in basic combat. You have to pass his course within a year of joining the guild."

Ziggy's eyes opened wide. "C-combat…?" he whimpered, "You mean like…fighting?"

"Uh, sort of. Not really. It's more about self-defence really. The Rescue Society does all kinds of work, and some of it can be a bit dangerous, so the guild wants its members to be able to at least handle themselves in a fight just in case one breaks out. Angelo teaches us how to disable an opponent without hurting them."

"Oh…" Ziggy said, relaxing a little, "Oh, okay…"

"We don't go out there looking for fights," Rico said with a laugh.

"Yeah. I understand."

"I'm getting a jump on my training, but Terry's been putting it off. He doesn't really like conflict, so I get it, but he's gotta do it soon."

Ziggy nodded thoughtfully. After a moment, he said, "Terry seems…really nice."

"Oh, he's the sweetest," Rico replied with a jovial chuckle, "Always tries his best to put a smile on everybody's faces. And he's always been really super helpful."

"You said you knew him a long time, right?"

"We went to school together! Way back when we were cubs, we were in the same class in elementary school. We became friends after that and kept in touch through school. We both finished school at the same time, and joined the guild at the same time. We've been a team a lot longer than we've been a 'guild team'."

Ziggy cast his gaze downward a little and said, "That sounds nice…"

"Yeah! We've…Oh…" Rico paused and then continued in a more subdued voice. "Sorry, I didn't mean to make you feel bad…"

"It's fine…"

"Hey, it's not like it's too late for you to make lifelong friends. You and Kona seem to be getting along, not to mention you and Sparks."

"Mhm…"

The sound of a door opening then caught both Pokémon's attention. Ziggy and Rico both turned to look at the doorway to the main hall, where someone had just entered the room. "Hey! There he is!" Rico proclaimed, "Terry!"

The Eevee had looked absentminded as he entered the room, but both of his ears perked up as soon as he heard his partner's voice. "Hey, Rico!" he said with a grin as he started to dash around to the other side of the table where Rico was sitting. Rico stood up from his seat as Terry approached and the two shared a quick hug.

"You're back already?" Rico asked.

"Yeah! It went a lot faster than we thought. What're you still doing here? Did you just finish lunch?"

Rico laughed. "I was performing the important job known as 'pestering Jules'."

Terry also laughed in response and the two shared a good chuckle.

"I know it sounds silly," Terry said as the two took a seat next to one another, still opposite to Ziggy, "but I missed you. It's not the same if the team's not together!"

"Ah, I know what you mean," Rico replied, "Feels a bit weird, huh?"

Terry nodded, and then turned to the Buizel. "Hey, Ziggy. How're you feeling?"

"Hi Terry…" Ziggy answered, "I'm…okay, I guess."

"Well that's good. I'm glad to hear that."

"I was just telling Ziggy about how we were in school together," Rico commented.

"Oh, yeah. I was such a tiny little cub, so shy and afraid of all these bigger cubs. That very first day of school was terrifying, but Rico happened to sit next to me and he was really nice."

"I remember, just before high school was when we both decided we wanted to join the guild. And we were both bummed out that we would have to finish school first, haha!"

"Gosh… We could fill books with the nonsense we got up to while we were in school," Terry said.

"Automatic bestsellers right there!"

The two laughed, and then there was a moment of quiet as they reflected upon their nostalgia. Then, Terry glanced over at Ziggy and spoke up. "Um…I guess you…never went to school?"

"Just a li'l bit when I was so young I can barely remember," Ziggy commented emotionlessly.

"Well," Rico said, "I think you're pretty smart considering those circumstances. You've gotta have a pretty good brain in that head."

Ziggy just gave Rico an odd look.

"I agree," Terry said, "I think you're bright. If you went back to school, I think you'd do all right."

The Buizel shuddered just a little, thoughts of being in school filling his mind. He had no frame of reference, but he at least knew that school involved being in groups of other students, with tens of them filling rooms. All of them, turning around in their desks, to stare at the weird cub with the weird fur.

Ziggy just barely picked up on the sound of Terry whispering, "What did I say…?"

He shook his head to clear his thoughts. "Can we…talk about something else?"

"Sorry…" Terry said with a frown.

"It's okay," Ziggy replied, followed by an awkward silence.

"Oh!" Terry then piped up suddenly. He turned to Rico and batted him on the arm to get his attention. "I picked up a newspaper on the way and saw something weird in it!"

"Ow…" Rico said in mock pain.

Terry snickered, and glanced over his shoulder. He then frowned for a moment, glanced around the room, and said, "Oh, shoot. I dropped my bag at the door."

Rico and Ziggy both followed the Eevee's gaze and saw a small, blue-coloured satchel laying abandoned on the ground right next to the door. It must have slipped off when he had first come in.

Ziggy glanced back at the other two for a moment, then back to the satchel, and once again back to the other two. "Uh…" he said, "I can get it."

"Huh?" Terry replied.

"I'm closer. I'll just go get it…" Ziggy said. He was referring to the fact that his side of the table faced towards the door, so he was the only Pokémon of the trio who wouldn't have to walk around the table to get to the satchel.

"Oh! Uh, okay. Thanks!"

Ziggy nodded and then stood up. For some reason, he got a brief wave of uncomfortableness. His fear of being seen by others briefly reared its head again, but it only lasted for a moment and Ziggy managed to shake it off. He glanced around to simply confirm to himself that the rest of the room was indeed empty, and then walked over to the door. It was a short trip to retrieve the satchel, and before long he had returned it to the table.

Terry reached over and took it. "Thanks, Ziggy!"

"It's okay…"

The Eevee nodded, and then opened his satchel. He fished out a rolled-up newspaper with his paw and unfurled it. "Here! Look at this weird article," he said to Rico.

"What?"

"This guy saw something weird over at Diamond Heights. We were just there like a week ago, weren't we?"

"Yeah, we were. When was this?"

"Yesterday, apparently. I dunno, he kinda sounds like a crazy old guy, but…"

The two continued to converse with each other about the newspaper article. It wasn't long before Ziggy couldn't follow what they were talking about, so he just remained silent and left them to their discussion. Instead, he took a moment to reflect on how he was feeling, and he realized something.

This was nice.

It was a very strange thing to admit to himself, but this was actually quite nice. He felt comfortable, or at least placated, sitting here with these two close friends and just spending time with them. For once, things felt calm. Things felt safe and relaxing and…normal.

Was this what life was like for normal Pokémon? Pokémon who weren't fr-

…Who weren't shiny?

"This Inteleon guy sounds like he knows what he's talking about," Rico commented.

"I don't think I've ever actually met an Inteleon before…" Terry said.

"Y'know…I don't think I have either. They're kinda rare, aren't they?"

"I guess… Hey Ziggy, you ever see an Inteleon?"

The Buizel took a moment before he realized he was being addressed. "Hu-wha? An Inteleon …? Ummm…" He thought about the question, but eventually shook his head. "Maybe one was in a crowd once, but that all just blurs together…"

A moment later, the door to the common room opened up once again, causing everybody to look in the door's direction. Lupe was coming through the doorway, struggling as she went. In addition to the satchel slung over her back, she was carrying a rather thick book in her mouth and carefully holding a roll of parchment with one of her six tails. She was forced to shove the door open with her shoulder.

"Whoa! Hey there, Lupe," Rico greeted her, "You all right, there?"

The Vulpix just grunted with exertion, the poor quadruped unable to do much in response while still holding all three of her items.

"Uh…" Ziggy spoke up, "D-d'you need help?"

"Rrnn?" Lupe replied with a questioning look.

Ziggy had already stood up. "That looks really hard… I, uh…I can hold the book for you. I-if you want, I mean…"

"Wrrhnrrg?"

Unable to understand her response, Ziggy simply walked over to her. He felt a bit of anxiousness, wondering if he was doing something wrong or offending her in some way by offering to help. She didn't offer any sort of negative response, though, so he eventually reached out and took hold of the book.

Lupe spat it out into his grip immediately. "Thanks, Ziggy," she said, "That sucker's heavy…"

"Uh…Y-yeah, no problem…" Ziggy stood there for a moment, awkwardly holding the book and now realizing that he didn't know what to do with himself.

"What is all of that?" Rico called to her.

"Helping out Olena with a bit of research. Copying down some notes from this library book for her. She neglected to mention it was a book with like a zillion chapters, though…"

"Oof…"

"Uhhh, so…" Ziggy spoke up in a soft, unsure voice, "Where, uh…Are you going to…your room with this, or…?"

Lupe looked up at him. "Um… I was going to, but I suppose I can sit here and do it. A little bit of company couldn't hurt."

"Sure!" Rico called over, "We're just hangin' out here. Feel free to join us!"

"Yeah!" Terry concurred.

Lupe nodded, and then looked at Ziggy and flashed him a thankful smile. She then made her way over to the table. Ziggy followed after her a moment later, carrying her book.

Once Lupe was settled at the table, she gave Ziggy the same pleasantries by asking him how he was doing and commenting on how nice it was to see him out of his room. Rico then showed her the newspaper article that Terry had brought in, which captured her interest for a short while.

Lupe then started to get to work while Rico and Terry started talking about something else. The conversation moved from topic to topic. Ziggy for the most part just sat there and listened, but he was interested in what the two had to say. Every now and then, he would dip his paw into the conversation briefly when he had something to say, or something was asked of him. Lupe would chime in from time to time as well.

As time slipped on by, Ziggy slowly found himself feeling less and less uncomfortable.

* * *

Sparks practically burst through the door, panting and out of breath. The long table, fully populated with guild members eating their dinner, all paused their conversation to glance over at him. When they saw who it was, many of them offered a friendly greeting.

"Glad you could join us, Sparks," Carmen said cheekily.

"Ah… Sorry… Sorry I'm late," he panted, "I got caught up in something… Lost track of time…"

It was late in the evening, and all the members of the active team had already gathered in the common room to eat dinner. It was a gathering Sparks was usually a part of, mostly because it hurt his soul if he had to pass up a delicious Liz-cooked meal. When he had glanced at the clock in the library and saw how late it had gotten, he had run back to the Society as quickly as he could. His legs were aching and now he was hungrier than ever, and he had still arrived almost 20 minutes late.

Sparks quickly made his way into the room. The truth was that being late to Liz's delicious meal wasn't the main reason he was so worried about his tardiness. It wasn't _his_ dinnertime he was concerned about, but rather somebody else's.

When Sparks had first seen the time, he realized that 12 hungry Pokémon had already gathered in the common room to eat, but one would be missing. Ziggy had been spending most dinnertimes lately at the table with the rest of the crew, but only because Sparks was there with him. On those few nights where his stress was just too high, Sparks had to bring dinner back to his room for him.

Now, Sparks was worried he was letting Ziggy go hungry and keeping him from his dinner. He had left the Buizel alone in his room for the day, with a container of food for lunch, but Sparks hadn't planned to have been gone for so long.

"Aw, man…" Sparks groaned as he entered the room and started to cross to the other side, "I'll be with you guys in a minute. I just gotta go get…"

Sparks trailed off and slowly came to a stop as he noticed a certain Pokémon sitting at the table. Seated amongst the rest of the team, across from Rico and Terry and in between Lupe and Kona, was Ziggy. He had a half-eaten buttered bun in one paw and was looking over towards Sparks.

"…Oh! Hey buddy," Sparks said, caught off guard.

Ziggy Mareepishly raised a paw to wave at him and said, "Hey…"

"I didn't…expect to see you here," Sparks commented, "When did you come out of your room?"

"Uhh…" Ziggy replied with a genuinely unsure look, and then turned to give Rico a questioning expression.

Rico swallowed what was in his mouth and then answered for the Buizel. "A couple hours ago," he said, "Ziggy's been hanging out and chatting with us."

"…Really?" Sparks murmured.

Ziggy turned back to look at Sparks and was silent for a moment, then gave him a quick little half-grin.

A few seconds later, Sparks was smiling and walking over to give Ziggy a pat on the back. "Well, that's great! That's great, buddy. Good job!"

Ziggy just blushed bashfully and tried to deflect the attention by going back to eating his bun, but Sparks could see just a hint of pride sparkling in the Buizel's eyes. Sparks couldn't lie and say there wasn't a spark of pride in his own eyes as well.

"Good job."


	9. Stay

Chapter 9 \- **Stay**

Sparks felt like a failure.

The jury was still out on whether or not that was a valid description of himself, but it was certainly what he felt like. The feeling of inadequateness weighed on his shoulders like a two-ton weight, leaving him looking tired and grumpy as he sipped his morning coffee.

It was the middle of October. Sparks had brought Ziggy into the guild exactly 28 days ago. Ziggy only had two or three more days left to stay there.

Things had been going well. It was the honest truth; Ziggy had been slowly becoming a bit more outgoing among the company of the active team, and had even casually interacted with some other guild members that he hadn't met before. He was starting to appear less skittish and nervous.

However, things were simply not going well _enough_. Or, rather, they weren't going well fast enough. Ziggy's newfound sense of comfort still only extended to Sparks, Carmen and the 12 members of the team. He was still nervous around the many other members in the building, making him feel uneasy whenever he was taken out of the common room to other parts of the building. Even setting foot outside was still completely out of the question.

Even if he were to be sent somewhere helpful, the fact still remained: Ziggy was not ready to leave.

Sparks groaned as he sat at the table in the common room, taking another sip of coffee. It was very early, and only a few Pokémon such as Kona and Akash were awake. The simple fact that Ziggy wasn't here next to him was proof enough of this conundrum. Once again, an active team member had briefly taken a client through the common room, and Ziggy had been in the room at the time. Unlike the Sableye, this client hardly even batted an eye at Ziggy. It was possible he hadn't even noticed the shiny Buizel, as he had been fully engaged in conversation with Shay. However, that was enough to throw Ziggy into a near-panic attack, and now he didn't want to come out of his room.

That wasn't all, though. Sparks could tell the looming deadline was weighing on Ziggy's mind too.

The sad fact was that Sparks had likely bitten off way more than he could chew. It was thankful that circumstances had led to them meeting, and that Ziggy had formed a bond of trust with him relatively quickly, but Sparks wasn't a miracle worker. There had never been any hope that he could cure Ziggy within a month.

But, what could be done? There were rules about the length of clients' residence. The Rescue Society was a non-profit organization partially funded by the government. While it was true that the government mostly stayed out of the guild's affairs entirely, seeing them mostly as a pseudo-public service, they did have some stipulations here and there. The government wasn't willing to pay to feed and house a whole crowd of Pokémon for months and months. This wasn't a hotel. If word got out that a client was staying for an extended period of time, even if it was just Ziggy alone, heads would start butting.

One by one, the other guild members woke up and filed into the common room. Liz brought out breakfast and everybody dug in. Pretty much everyone asked Sparks where Ziggy was, to the point that he got a little annoyed at giving the same answer repeatedly. Breakfast was still a lighthearted event, though, with everybody excited to begin the day's work.

Sparks just sighed and sipped his coffee. He didn't feel very hungry.

Soon after, everybody was gathered around the white board for the morning briefing. Sparks stood off to the side and watched silently as Carmen took her place at the front to address everybody.

"All right, team," she announced, "We've got a few assignments here. The east side high school wants to hire some of us to help with 'free lunch day'. They want someone making sandwiches and handing them out to the cubs, and such. Any takers?"

"I can do that," Lupe spoke up.

"Can I join you?" Kona asked.

"Sure! Sounds like fun."

"All right then," Carmen said as she scribbled something onto her clipboard, "Kona…and Lupe… Right! There's also a celebration party going on down by the beaches for a company and its employees. They're looking for somebody…"

The sound of Carmen's voice trailed off. Sparks found himself staring off at nothing for a moment, his thoughts running wild. He could feel his stress building, forming a painful ache in the pit of his stomach. He started to regret not eating anything at breakfast as an uneasy feeling started to cloud over him. He couldn't focus on anything anymore. He was just too lost in his own pessimistic, troubled thoughts. Why? Why did things have to end up like this?

"…Sparks? …_Sparks!_"

The Raichu gasped softly, startled out of his trance by Carmen's voice. He shook his head and glanced around, realizing that he and Carmen were alone in the room now. The morning briefing was over. When had that happened?

"Sparks, are you okay?"

"Ah…" Sparks faltered for a moment but quickly got a hold of himself, "Yeah, I'm fine… Sorry, I kinda…dozed off for a moment there."

Carmen was looking down at him, genuine concern easily visible in her expression.

Sparks closed his eyes for a moment and sighed. "I'm fine, Carmen. I just woke up on the wrong side of the bed today…" It was the honest truth, and the reason that he had nothing but coffee in his belly at the moment.

"Okay…" Carmen said, sounding unsure of whether to accept his explanation or not, "I have to go supervise the requests board and open the gate, but after I'm done we need to talk."

Dread filled Sparks' heart. He knew immediately what Carmen wanted to talk about. "All right…" he said resignedly, "I'll just, uh… See if there's anything left over from breakfast that I can choke down."

"I didn't see you eat very much."

"I didn't eat anything."

Carmen gave him another very concerned look before taking her leave and heading out to the courtyard. Sparks, meanwhile, sullenly made his way back over to the table and picked up a single bun. It was about the only thing there that looked even a little appetizing.

Ten minutes later, Carmen returned. Sparks had only eaten half of the bun. She marched over and sat at the table across from him. With a neutral expression, she folded her paws in front of her and simply said, "What are we going to do with him?"

Sparks closed his eyes and sighed. "I don't know," he admitted, "I just don't know. I've failed…"

"You haven't failed anything, Sparks. You _have_ helped him a lot already. We're just stuck in an unfortunate situation here. I sympathise with both you and Ziggy, but we need to address this."

"I know…" Sparks mumbled, not feeling motivated by Carmen's encouragement. He still felt like a failure. He had helped plenty of homeless and struggling Pokémon before, and the one-month time limit had never been an issue until now. Sending difficult cases off to other organizations was just the natural flow of how they helped out at the Society.

Ziggy was different, though. Ziggy's case was special.

"We can't keep treating him here, Sparks," Carmen said in an even tone, "And you live here, so it's not like you can board him in your house or anything."

"Mm…"

"I know it might not be the best thing for Ziggy, exactly, but it's just something we have to do. We have to decide who we're going to hand him off to." When Sparks just shook his head, Carmen added in a softer tone, "I know it will frighten him and stress him out, but in the long run it'll be good for him. I'm sure wherever he goes, you can still go visit him."

This time, Sparks groaned in frustration, which mildly caught Carmen off guard. "We can't do that to him. We just can't. It's going to cause him harm. It's going to be traumatizing to him. Doing that to a Pokémon goes _completely_ against our entire mission statement. We're here to help Pokémon, and that _won't_ help him."

"Sparks, it _will_ help him…" Carmen started.

The Raichu cut her off. "No. What he needs right now is safety and security. What he needs are Pokémon he can trust. He has that right here. Do you know how bad it's going to be for him if we take all of that away?"

Carmen stared at Sparks in silence for a moment. Sparks sighed and tried to calm his temper. He had known Carmen long enough to feel comfortable interrupting her like that, even though she was his boss, but he also knew that getting heated wouldn't help anybody.

"Sparks…" she eventually said, "I want him to stay here. Maybe you don't believe it, but it's true. I also think keeping Ziggy here will be the most helpful to him." She pressed one of her paws against the table for emphasis. "But he _can't_, Sparks. He can't sit in one of our rooms and take more of the government's money. We're lucky enough that the government provides almost full cost of living for everybody on the active team, plus yourself and myself. The fact that lunch is the only thing we have to buy for ourselves is a luxury, but that's because we work for the guild. If the higher ups find out that Ziggy is essentially freeloading here…we might _lose_ those luxuries."

Poor Sparks just held a paw to his forehead and groaned.

"That's the way things are, Sparks," Carmen said regrettably, "If you can think of a way around that, by all means let me know. However, as it currently stands… Sparks, he has to go."

"Ugh…" Sparks murmured, swearing under his breath.

"I don't want you to make a decision on the last possible day, so I'm gonna ask for your decision right now."

Sparks turned to Carmen and gave her a wide-eyed look. She seemed apologetic but firm. "I…" Sparks started to say, suddenly put on the spot, but fell silent again. He gave the matter some more thought, glancing over at the door to the dorms a few times, as he drummed his paws on the table and flitted his tail in irritation.

"Just…" he finally said, "Can you just…give me until tonight?"

Carmen arched an eyebrow.

Sparks sighed in resignation and said, "I promise I _will_ have a decision by then, even if I don't like it… I just feel like I can't make it right this second."

"…All right, fine," Carmen replied, "Whatever we do with him, though, we have to start setting it up tomorrow."

"I know. You're right."

"Give it some thought and let me know."

Sparks nodded grimly in response. Carmen then got up, bid him good day, and left to do work elsewhere, leaving Sparks alone in the common room. Everybody on the team had gone off to do a duty of some sort, and Ziggy was still in his room. The feeling of quiet was deafening. It only made the thoughts and questions in Sparks' head louder.

Some time passed, though how much Sparks couldn't be sure. The silence in the room was finally broken by the sound of a door opening. Sparks lifted his head towards the door to the main hall, but it wasn't open. He turned the other way, realizing that it was the dorm room doorway that had opened by just a tiny crack. Peeking out from behind the doorway was a tiny, nervous little Buizel head. "Sparks…?"

"Hey, buddy," Sparks greeted him in a gentle tone, "How're you doing?"

Ziggy glanced around the room for a moment. When he saw that it was empty save for Sparks, he entered through the doorway fully and began to make his way over to the table. "I… I wondered where you were," he said, rubbing his arm and looking awkward.

"I've just been sitting out here, bud."

"Yeah… S-sorry for stayin' in my room…"

Sparks shook his head. "It's fine, buddy. Do you feel better?"

"Yeah, sorta… I'm just really…really scared lately. I can't focus, and I'm worrying about everything."

"Ah…" Sparks said with a sigh. He knew exactly what Ziggy was scared of. "I'm still trying, buddy. Trust me, I'm trying…"

Ziggy finally reached the table and took a seat across from Sparks. He looked up at the larger Raichu with small, vulnerable eyes and whispered, "I don't wanna go…"

"I don't want you to go either… None of us do."

Ziggy frowned even more. "So why do I haveta…?"

"'Cus those are the rules…"

The crestfallen look on Ziggy's face upon hearing that was heartbreaking to see. Sparks tried to think of something, _anything_, he could say to cheer him up. Just then, though, someone else entered the room.

"Oop! Pardon me, y'all," Liz said, making her way to the table, "I'm just gon' pick up these dishes 'fore I head out." The Miltank then started the process of gathering up the used plates, cutlery, and leftover food from breakfast.

"Sorry, Liz. We can move," Sparks said to her.

"Aw, shut yer mouth and hold yer butts. Y'all are fine where ya are. Pr'tend I'm not here, sugar."

Sparks gave her a questioning look, to which she nodded, and then he shrugged and turned back to Ziggy. "Buddy…" he said in a sombre tone, "Have _you_ given any thought to moving out of this place? Or is it too stressful to even think of?"

Ziggy immediately looked uncomfortable. "I…I-it's scary…"

"You know that if we send you somewhere, it'll be some place that we trust, full of Pokémon that we trust, right?"

"Y-yeah…"

"And I can come visit you, wherever it…"

Ziggy whined and started to appear agitated.

"…Y'know what, never mind," Sparks quickly interjected, "Don't worry about it. Let us figure it out, okay? Just put it out of your mind. Focus on something else today. Is there maybe something you wanna do? Or something we can do for you…?"

"I dunno…" Ziggy murmured.

A moment of tense silence filled the room, only broken up by the repeated clinking and clanging of Liz gathering up everything off of the table. Eventually, those sounds drew the curious attention of both Pokémon. Liz was at the opposite end, and had made two impressive stacks of plates and bowls. She had with her a metal tray, and was in the process of loading both stacks onto the tray, which was already filled with an assortment of cutlery. Sparks knew that Liz was skilled enough to be able to carry that all the way back to the kitchen without dropping a thing. She had a masterful sense of balance. Still, though, it looked like it was going to take her at least three trips to clean up everything.

"Golly me," she commented to herself with a chuckle, "I'm gonna havta start servin' everything through a juicer. A lot less cleanup there, ha!"

"You're…gonna carry all of that?" Ziggy spoke up, nervously raising his voice high enough for the Miltank to hear.

Liz glanced up, surprised to be addressed by him, but then flashed him a winning smile. "Sure am, cutie pie! This here's my mornin' exercise! Haha! And don't y'all go thinkin' I'm gonna drop somethin', 'cus if I do then I owe Jules 10 Poké."

"That's… a lot of dishes…" Ziggy muttered.

"Yeah… Sadly, I ain't some fancy-schmancy Psychic-Type so I can't carry it all back at once. But that's kinda lazy anyhow, if ya ask me. I don't mind it none. I just do my best." With that, Liz then expertly lifted the tray up with her two front hooves. The stacks of dishes barely swayed.

"Uh… L-Liz?"

Liz had turned around to leave, but looked back over her shoulder at Ziggy. "Yes, hun?"

"Um…" The Buizel briefly glanced at Sparks, and then back to Liz. "Uh…Can I help?"

"Beg pardon?" Liz asked with a tilted glance. Sparks was also giving the Buizel a curious look, which caused him to feel a bit self-conscious about the attention.

"I-I mean, if you…if you want help, or…Y'know, I just thought, that seems like a lot…for one Pokémon to carry…" His words trailed off until they were nothing more than a quiet murmur.

Sparks looked at Ziggy with raised eyebrows. "You want to help Liz carry the dishes back to the kitchen?" he asked gently.

"Well…s-sure, I guess…" he said, "I mean… I can carry stuff. That's not that hard, and I thought it would…y'know, help."

"Well, that's mighty kind of ya," Liz answered before Sparks could say anything else, "Sure, I don't mind if'n ya wanna carry a few things back. Just don't take too much, hon, and take care not to drop anythin'. I'd certainly 'preciate the help."

Sparks thought he saw Ziggy's face light up for just a brief moment. "Y-yeah? Uh, okay. Yeah, I can take a couple things…" the Buizel said.

As Ziggy stood up and started to gather a couple plates, spoons and forks, Sparks watched him from his seat. Liz patiently waited by the door, since she'd have to show Ziggy where the kitchen was, but Ziggy moved as quickly as he could to gather up as much as he could safely carry. Compared to Liz it wasn't much, but it still made a dent in Liz's remaining workload.

Ziggy then carefully walked over towards Liz, giving her a shy look as he approached as if to silently ask if what he was doing was okay.

"All right, hon, ya just follow me and I'll show ya where that all goes," she said to him with a big, warm smile. He nodded to her, and then made his way over to the door. Liz expertly managed to open the door using only her tail, and allowed the Buizel to step through. There was a brief hesitation as he stepped out into the main hall, away from the 'safety' of the common room, but it only lasted a brief moment.

"'Ey! Sparky boy!"

Sparks was jolted out of his stupor by Liz's shout. He had been watching Ziggy with great interest, perhaps even a little transfixed by what he was watching. "Ah, uh…Wha?" he replied.

"Ya just gonna sit there an' let Zig do everythin'? Grab somethin' and help out, ya punk! What kinda mentor are ya?" She punctuated her statement with a laugh, showing she was only joking.

"Right!" Sparks said, feeling embarrassed, "Right, sorry. I was distracted by something…" He then stood up and started to gather some dishes himself. He would have gotten up right alongside Ziggy to help right away, but his mind had been occupied by something else. Something rather important.

Sparks had just gotten an idea…

* * *

"Sparks, what is this about?" Carmen asked impatiently, no doubt giving the back of his head a perturbed scowl.

"Just trust me," Sparks said as he continued to lead her down the stairs and back towards the common room, "I have an idea for how we can make this all work."

"And are you going to explain this giant stack of paper you're carrying?" Carmen pressed.

"It's just a bunch of old status reports and recycle paper. Nothing important."

"Erm…"

Before long, they had reached the door to the common room. The door was closed, and Sparks and Carmen came to a stop outside of it. "Okay!" Sparks said, a hint of excitement in his voice.

"Sparks…"

The Raichu very gently opened the door with his tail, making no sound and opening a crack just barely large enough to peek inside. He saw Ziggy sitting at the end of the table, the same place he had been in when Sparks had departed earlier, but there was nobody else in the room. It was late, so most of the team were in their own rooms.

"All right. Just stay out here and watch. Try not to let him see you," Sparks said to Carmen.

"Sparks, what the hell is going on?"

"Just watch. This is the answer. This is the answer we need."

Before even giving the Braixen a chance to answer, Sparks pushed open the door with his hind paw and walked into the common room carrying his large stack of paper. Ziggy glanced up upon him entering, so he shouted a quick greeting to the Buizel before closing the door almost all the way with his tail, leaving a crack for Carmen to look through.

"How's it going, buddy?" he asked as he walked across the room.

"Okay…I guess…" Ziggy murmured in a melancholy voice.

Sparks made it about halfway across the room, where he was still a fair distance away from where Ziggy was seated. It was at that moment that Sparks lost his grip, sending the entire stack of papers tumbling to the ground.

"Aw, crap!" he exclaimed as the papers quickly made a huge mess on the floor. With a heavy sigh, he bent down and started to gather them up once again. He grumbled to himself softly as he did.

The truth was that Sparks had done this on purpose. These papers were of no importance and he had deliberately dropped them all. Sparks kept his focus on the papers, hoping that his hunch was correct.

A moment later, to his relief, Ziggy was at his side a moment later. No words had been spoken, but the Buizel immediately started to help him gather up the dropped papers. "Ah… Thanks, buddy," Sparks said to him in gratitude.

"Mm… No problem…"

With the two of them working together, it didn't take much more than a couple minutes to gather up all of the papers into a pair of neat stacks. "I gotta watch where I'm goin'," Sparks commented with a chuckle as he picked up one of the stacks again, and then turned to Ziggy. "I'm supposed to bring these to Carmen, but I guess she's not here. You haven't seen her have you?"

Ziggy shook his head.

"She's probably upstairs," Sparks commented, "I shoulda checked there first. Oh well… Can you help put that stack on top of my stack, bud?"

"Uh… No, it's fine. I got 'em…" Ziggy said before reaching down and picking up his own, comparatively smaller pile of papers. He managed to hold them in his paws fairly easily.

"Oh! All right then. Thanks again! She shouldn't be too far…"

With that, Sparks turned around and headed back towards the door he had come in from in the first place. He heard the pawsteps of Ziggy following closely behind him. When he opened up the door and stepped through, as expected, a slightly-bewildered Carmen stood on the other side.

"Aha! There you are!" Sparks said once he 'noticed' her, "I got those papers you wanted. Here you go." He then handed over the stack of papers, which Carmen took though it only made her appear even more confused. She turned to regard Ziggy, who paused for a moment before approaching her as well. He added his stack to hers, leaving her carrying all of the papers.

"Great! Thanks again, buddy," Sparks said to the Buizel, "Carmen and I have to talk about this stuff now." He indicated the stack of papers with his paw. "It's gettin' late. Why don't you head back to your room, and I'll come and hang out with you for a bit before bed. Okay?"

"Uh… Okay, sure," Ziggy said. He nodded to Sparks, and then gave a bit more of a reverent bow to Carmen. After bidding the two of them farewell, he headed back through the door to the common room and shut it behind him.

Carmen then turned to Sparks and simply said, "Sparks, what the _hell_ was all of that?"

"That's how he can stay!" Sparks said excitedly.

"All right…" Carmen said, putting down the papers and pinching the bridge of her muzzle, "You're gonna have to start making a lot more sense, because this is going nowhere."

"We can _hire_ him, Carmen."

The Braixen gave him an odd look. "'Hire' him?"

Sparks nodded. "He can't stay with us anymore if he's a client, but if he's working for us then we can house him here. That's how it works, isn't it? If he's officially on record as an employee of the guild, then he can stay with us and we can keep giving him help."

"Hire him to do _what_, exactly?"

"To help out around the guild! Y'know, be an assistant. A custodian. That sort of stuff." Sparks gestured towards the closed door and continued. "I've noticed that he's a very helpful Pokémon. Once he gets past all that fear and anxiety, the desire to help others seems to come naturally to him. You saw him just now, he didn't even have to be asked to help me pick that stuff up. He just did it! Earlier today he asked if he could help Liz clear the table after breakfast, and I've seen him help out here and there too."

Carmen gave him a thoughtful, though slightly dubious look. "Mmm…" she murmured in thought.

"We're authorized to hire employees here. We've got Suva the Tentacruel washing dishes, for example. As long as we can get him to pull his weight a bit and help out around the building with chores and stuff, I'm sure we can justify keeping him here. And doing stuff like that might be good for his treatment anyway!"

Now, Carmen had crossed her forelimbs and was glancing away. She was silent for a moment, and then finally said, "Interesting…"

"I'm sure he'd be happy to do it, and we can just keep it to doing chores for us, the Pokémon he's close with. He really doesn't want to leave, so if this is the price to pay for staying I think he'll go for it."

"I understand the idea, Sparks," Carmen commented, "I'm just not entirely sure."

"Not sure about what? Carmen, it's the only way I can think of to keep him here."

"I know, Sparks, but I can't just run a bunch of technicalities to get what I want. I'm still the guildmaster."

Sparks shook his head. "It might not be the most conventional of employment, but it'll work. I'm sure of it!"

Carmen grumbled indecisively for a moment. "I'd have to think about it…" she eventually said, "but, of course, we don't have much time for that. If I find a problem with this plan and he can't stay, then his time will be up and he'll have to leave immediately…"

"…Right," Sparks said softly, a rush of trepidation overcoming him. He hadn't thought about it this way, but there was a bit of a risk involved. Hiring Ziggy to help around the society was the only plan he had come up with. He had nothing for backup.

Eventually, Sparks spoke up again. "Y'know what? This might start out as a technicality to keep him here, but I think once he gets used to it he can really help us out. I mean, you've got so many papers in your office that you haven't seen your desk in months. Wouldn't it be nice to have someone come and help sort them?"

"He's not educated, Sparks. And he started out as a client. There's likely to be questions."

Sparks shook his head. "We'll make it work. Don't worry about all that. It's not like someone from the government barges down our door the minute we make an adjustment to the budget."

"I'm sure they'd _love_ to…"

"Just sleep on it, Carmen…" After a pause, he added in a quiet voice, "Please?"

Carmen hefted a heavy sigh. "…All right," she relented, "This is, if you'll pardon the high society phrase, highly unorthodox…"

Sparks chuckled and said, "I know… He's a bit of an unorthodox Pokémon."

* * *

A very tired and groggy Raichu groaned and lifted himself out of bed. It was bright outside already, meaning he had likely overslept. Breakfast was probably starting right about now without him. As he sat up, he held a paw to his head and groaned. He was incredibly tired. He hadn't gotten a good sleep at all.

Perhaps he had been tossing and turning subconsciously as he worried about Ziggy in the back of his mind. The uncertainty of whether or not Ziggy could stay may have been playing with his mind and preventing him from getting a good sleep.

Or, more likely, simply because the nightmares had been particularly bad that night.

Sparks groaned again as he stood up and shuffled his way to the door. He wandered like a zombie out of his room and over to one of the dorm's bathrooms. His head was lightly pounding the entire time.

It was unfortunate. Today was not a good day to be running on fumes.

After his business in the bathroom was concluded, Sparks ducked back into his room one more time so he could comb some of his fur into place and put on his badge. Before he departed to join the others for breakfast, he paused halfway out the door. He glanced back into his room, looking at the top of his dresser. He stood there for a few moments, staring in silence and stewing in indecision. Eventually, he shook his head dismissively and continued out the door, closing it behind him.

The bottle of pills sat untouched on the top of the dresser.

Breakfast was rather uproarious as Sparks entered the room, which didn't help his headache very much. However, the smiling faces of his friends and the warm 'good mornings' were enough to brighten his spirits. He noticed that Ziggy was sitting at the very end of the table next to Kona, which made Sparks happy to see. It wasn't very often the Buizel could get himself up and out of his room in the morning without Sparks there alongside him.

Sparks took a seat across from Ziggy. "G'mornin' bud," he said.

"Hey…" he said, and then gave Sparks a frown. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine. Just tired," Sparks answered.

Ziggy continued to frown, not looking entirely convinced by that answer. "Y'sure…?"

Sparks nodded and gave him a tired but reassuring smile. "I'll be fine, bud. How about you? You came to breakfast by yourself, I see."

"Uh, well…" Ziggy looked bashful as he tilted his head towards the Dewott next to him. "Kona woke me up…" he said.

Kona was in the middle of a mouthful of food, which he awkwardly tried to smile around once attention was on him.

"That's nice," Sparks commented.

"Yeah…" Ziggy nodded, "Breakfast with everybody is cool. It's…I can handle this."

Sparks realized that the implication was that there was hardly any risk of anybody coming into the room during breakfast besides the active team. The Raichu took a moment to glance down the table at the other Pokémon. He was quite thankful that everybody had been so accommodating and nobody had a problem with letting Ziggy eat breakfast with all of them, despite the fact that he was merely a client.

While he was looking down the table, Sparks caught Kandice's eye. The Audino was watching him in concern, no doubt having noticed how tired he seemed.

"I figured Ziggy wouldn't want to miss Liz's famous eggy toast!"

Sparks glanced back at Kona, who had managed to swallow his mouthful and could now talk. "Everything Liz makes is 'famous'," he quipped in reply.

"Yeah. It's…really, really good," Ziggy said, "Thanks for coming to get me, Kona."

"Aw, no problem dude!"

Ziggy nodded and took another bite of the dish; slices of toast covered in a layer of eggs and milk. Sparks noticed that the Buizel seemed melancholy, no doubt because of his impending departure from the Society. Sparks just hoped that Carmen had come to a decision by now. He didn't want to discuss aspects of the job with Ziggy until Carmen gave him the okay. He didn't want to give the kid false hope, after all.

Sparks sighed and rubbed his cheeks. Whenever he got overly tired or didn't get enough sleep, the electricity in the sacs in his cheeks got stagnant and it made parts of his head and face ache. He often found he couldn't use Electric-type attacks properly if he was too tired.

The Raichu idly glanced down the table, and once again caught Kandice's eye. She only gave him a brief look this time before returning to her food, but it was clear she was still showing concern. Sparks wasn't sure why, exactly. It wasn't the first time he had come to the breakfast table feeling exhausted.

Breakfast passed by rather uneventfully after that. Sparks tried to engage in friendly conversation with Ziggy, but the Buizel didn't feel much like talking. Sparks knew he had to get an answer from Carmen sooner rather than later. When breakfast was finished, the entire group moved like clockwork over to the morning briefing. Sparks remained sitting at the table, as did Ziggy, and they watched from a distance as Carmen addressed the team.

Terry and Rico were sent off as a pair, as usual, while Danika was once again banished to her dungeon upstairs. All in all, things were quite normal and routine in the Rescue Society.

Sparks realized he was falling asleep. He needed coffee.

"Hey…" Ziggy spoke up, causing Sparks to turn and look at him.

"Yeah, buddy?"

Ziggy bit his lip and glanced away for a moment, but then started to speak in a soft voice. "Just…thanks for everything. You've all been so nice to me, but especially you. I…I'm really glad I got to meet you all."

"I'm glad I got to meet you too, Ziggy, but don't talk like this is goodbye. No matter what happens, we're not gonna write each other out of our lives entirely."

"Mmm…" Ziggy rubbed his shoulder and glanced down at the table. "It's…been really nice…"

Sparks skewed his lips for a moment as he regarded the downcast Buizel. "How've you been feeling lately?" he asked.

"Uhh…B-besides being worried about…?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, well…" Ziggy murmured, "Okay. I guess. It feels nice to be here with you guys… I finally feel like I can kinda relax a bit… It feels like a place where I'm actually allowed to be. Just…the fact that I'm here, instead of…out there…I dunno, it feels like my brain can finally work and I can think about other stuff besides…stealing food and hiding from Pokémon…"

Sparks nodded sagely. "Do you feel like we're helping you?"

"Oh, absolutely," Ziggy said, giving Sparks a concerned frown, "I…I seriously couldn't imagine what woulda happened to me out there without you guys… In here, in this room anyway, I feel like I can just sit here…and nobody cares about my freaky golden fur. I feel like…_me_. I don't know what it's like to feel like me, y'know?"

"I get that…" Sparks said, "The most important thing is to make you feel comfortable and secure, because only then can real progress be made, and one day soon hopefully you can proudly march out that door."

Ziggy looked as if a cold breeze had just blew past him. "I…don't think I can…"

Sparks shook his head. "No. I know. You feel safe and comfortable here, in this room, but outside is another story."

"Y-yeah…"

"You're still nervous about just going to the rest of the building, right?"

Ziggy bit his lip, and then said, "Yeah…" There was a poignant pause where neither said anything, and then Ziggy spoke up again. "Um…Did you talk to Carmen…?"

"She hasn't given me a solid answer yet. She should let me know by tonight."

"Oh, okay…"

Sparks then yawned loudly, feeling like his head weighed a thousand pounds. Once the yawn was finished, he noticed Ziggy was looking at him in concern again.

"Why're you so sleepy?" he asked.

"'Cus I didn't sleep right…" Sparks answered, "Urgh…" He was realizing that he actually felt even more tired than he had thought. Any energy he had gotten upon waking up had just vanished completely.

"Are…you gonna be okay?" Ziggy asked him.

"I should just go back to bed for a bit… Get a few more Z's…" Sparks commented, his gaze drifting over towards the door to the dorms. After a moment, he looked back at Ziggy and asked, "Issat okay with you? Can you handle being by yourself for a li'l bit? I'm only gonna nap for another hour, hour and a half tops."

"Um…" Ziggy looked a little nervous, but it only lasted for a second. "Yeah, I guess…" he answered, "I can sit on the couch. Kona gave me this neat book with pictures from all around the world."

"Did he? That was nice of him."

"Yeah. He's really nice…"

Sparks nodded again, a bit of a smile tugging at his lips. "You've made friends here."

A little half-smile briefly flashed across the Buizel's muzzle. "I…I have, haven't I?"

"I think that's a victory if nothing else," Sparks said, giving the Buizel a warm smile before another yawn suddenly interrupted him. "Mrgh… I'd better go before I fall asleep here on the table. I'll see you in an hour, bud."

"Okay," Ziggy said, and then after a pause added, "I hope you feel better."

"Thanks, buddy," Sparks said, and then stood up. He proceeded to walk like a zombie back towards his room, hoping he would wake up later with a bit more energy. He would need it if he was going to face the day, after all.

Decisions would be made today.

* * *

Sparks yawned and groaned softly as he rolled over in his bed. He still felt a bit sluggish, but was feeling much better after his nap. A moment later, he forced himself to sit up so he could shake off the last remnants of sleepiness. He stretched his limbs, letting out a satisfied sigh as he did. He had pretty much crawled right back into bed the moment he had stepped back into his room, and he was out cold as soon as he had hit the pillow.

It was raining outside. Sparks could hear the raindrops pattering against the small window in his room. Fall had been approaching slowly and peacefully, but by the sound of it the first heavy rainfall of the season had arrived.

With one more short yawn, he reached over towards the side table next to his bed and picked up his badge, which he affixed to his fur once more. He had left it there so that if someone had needed him, the sound of their voice through the badge would have awakened him. It looked as if that hadn't been the case, though. He'd had a nice uninterrupted sleep, and it had left him feeling quite relaxed.

Sparks glanced over at the window, and saw confirmation that it was indeed raining outside. It wasn't extremely heavy rain, like one would see in a storm, but it was more than just a couple showers. The kind of rain that makes a nice, constant din sound against the ground and the trees, but doesn't immediately soak you to the bone if you stand in it for more than two seconds.

As his eyes drifted around the room and eventually found the clock on his wall, that's when his relaxation utterly shattered. Sparks at first thought grogginess was making him see things, but his eyes nearly bugged out of his head when he saw that wasn't the case.

It was one o'clock in the afternoon.

Sparks had overslept. His quick one hour nap had turned into nearly _five_ hours long.

The Raichu leapt out of his bed like it was on fire and quickly dashed for the door. Sparks had always had a great internal clock. If he decided he was going to nap for an hour, then an hour later was when he would wake up without any alarm clock necessary. The fact that he had overslept _this_ much showed just how exhausted he had been, and it came as a shock to him.

Sparks made a quick visit to the bathroom before dashing out into the common room. He had left Ziggy alone, planning to come back to him in an hour. Not only was it hours later, likely making Ziggy confused and concerned as to where he was, but he had now missed lunch. Sparks was supposed to be Ziggy's caretaker while he was here, and he was kicking himself for oversleeping so much.

The Raichu practically burst through the door, but he found the common room completely empty. Ziggy wasn't anywhere to be seen, and there was nobody else around. There weren't even any active team members taking a late lunch break.

Where was Ziggy? Sparks quickly darted back to the dorms to see if Ziggy was in his room, but his knocks on the Buizel's bedroom door went unanswered. Sparks eventually used his badge to open the door, but Ziggy wasn't inside. Sparks then headed back to the common room and called out Ziggy's name, but to no response. He opened the door to the main hall and called for Ziggy again, but there was still no answer.

Sparks then tapped his badge. "Does anybody know where Ziggy is?" he spoke into it.

"No, sorry."

"I'm out of the building right now."

"He was in the common room last I saw him…"

The string of negative responses shed no further light on where Ziggy had disappeared to. With nothing else to go on, Sparks' only option at this point was to search the halls of the building and hope the Buizel could be found. Sparks didn't think Ziggy would have left the society again, so he had to be in the building somewhere.

At least, Sparks _hoped_ he hadn't run away again.

He started by checking the ground level. Sparks felt awful as he dashed through the halls and checked as many places as he could. This entire week he had been feeling like he was letting the Buizel down, and now he felt like that more than ever. Ziggy was _his_ responsibility. He was supposed to be there, looking after the poor Buizel, instead of sleeping like a Slowpoke in his room. Why hadn't he just set an alarm?

It was the middle of the day on a weekday, so there weren't too many Pokémon running around on the lower floors. Everybody was either out in the fields, or working in an office upstairs. The lower floors acted more as a living space, with amenities such as the gymnasium, the swimming pool, meeting rooms and the like. Sparks continued calling out Ziggy's name as he went, but couldn't find a single trace of the Buizel anywhere.

Sparks eventually ended up back where he started, in the last open hallway before the door leading back to the guild's entrance. He was taking a moment to catch his breath, as he had been running everywhere, and was about to give up and go check the second floor. Before he did, though, something caught his eye.

This particular hallway went in two directions away from the door to the entrance hall, but there was a slightly larger area near the doorway with a few seats and potted plants. It was an area that generally served as a waiting area for clients if they had business down here. Across from the doorway, the opposite wall was occupied by a large sliding glass door. This led out into the guild's courtyard.

The courtyard was a green area behind the society building, accessible only through this single glass doorway. Looking at the building from the front or from its sides, it would appear that the building was a perfect rectangle in shape. However, there was a small area that cut into the back face of the building, which formed the courtyard. It was surrounded on three sides by the walls of the building, and on the fourth side by a tall, decorative stone wall. Behind the stone wall, though not visible from within the courtyard, was the edge of the cliff that the society was built on, which overlooked the ocean to the north of Radiant City. The courtyard was small but picturesque, filled with a couple trees, beds of colourful flowers, some aesthetically pleasing stones and boulders, as well as a small artificial pond and creek near the middle.

And, standing out in the middle of the courtyard, was Ziggy.

Sparks walked up to the glass door and stared out in confusion. The rain was still coming down, heavy but not hard, and creating a quiet din that could be heard through the door. The Buizel was standing on a low, flat rock that sat next to the pond. His eyes were closed, his expression was blank, and he was simply standing there in the middle of the rain.

"What the…?" Sparks murmured. He didn't quite know what to make of the sight. It looked as if Ziggy had been hit with Hypnosis or Disable or something. He looked as if he were in a trance, or perhaps as if he had been sleepwalking.

Sparks knocked on the door, trying to get Ziggy's attention, but the din of the rain likely drowned out the noise. He then slid the door open, letting in a wave of cooler air as he did. The scent of fresh rainfall immediately filled his senses. Sparks took a single step out into the courtyard so that he was still under the awning, the only dry space in the outdoor area.

"Ziggy?" he called out to the Buizel, "Buddy? Whatcha doin'?"

He didn't answer, though. He simply remained, still as a statue.

Sparks started to get concerned. "Ziggy? Are you all right?" he called, a little louder. When there was still no response, Sparks sighed softly to himself. It looked like he was going to have to get wet.

Sparks resigned himself to the inconvenience and stepped out into the courtyard, immediately feeling the cool drops of rain on his fur. Sparks didn't particularly enjoy being out in the rain, but working at the guild often necessitated it so he had learned to simply tolerate it. Still, though, he quickly made his way over to Ziggy hoping he had to spend as little time out here as possible.

The Buizel still didn't move as he approached. Sparks waited until he was right next to Ziggy before speaking again. "Ziggy!"

Finally, a reaction. Ziggy started, his eyes darting open as if he had just been woken up. He turned to look at Sparks, and recognition quickly replaced his look of surprise. "Oh, Sparks," he said, "You surprised me…"

Sparks looked at him in concern. "You okay, bud?"

"Y-yeah. Sorry," he said, giving Sparks a remorseful look, "I…didn't notice you. I was kinda…I wasn't paying attention."

"All right…" Sparks said, a tad warily, "What're you doing out here?"

"Oh, uh…" Ziggy murmured as the slightest hint of a bashful blush adorned his cheeks, "I'm just, y'know, standing. Out here in the rain, y'know…"

Sparks gave him a quizzical look. "Erm…"

"Ah, well…" Ziggy rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and glanced away. "I've always really liked the rain…" he said, "I…like the way it looks. The way it sounds. The way it feels… I saw that it was raining, and I remember you showed me this yard thingy, and…"

"Oh…" Sparks remarked, "You just came out here 'cus you…like the rain?"

"I-it's kinda silly, I know…" Ziggy murmured bashfully, "I…I do this all the time. I did it back in Sunshine Village too. When it rains, I go find a spot where I can be alone and…"

Sparks furrowed his brow. "Um…Okay. I hope you don't mind me asking this, but…Why? Aren't you getting cold?"

"No, not really…"

"Oh, right," Sparks said, slapping his forehead, "Water-Type."

"I don't know, really. I just…I guess…" Ziggy was quiet for a moment as he gathered his thoughts, and then said, "I guess it just feels…nice to be out in the rain. It makes me feel relaxed. It makes me feel calm… Sometimes…even when it feels like everything is going wrong…I stand out in the rain and…things don't seem so bad anymore."

Sparks was silent for a moment as he regarded the Buizel. Appearance-wise, he did seem rather calm. "You kinda feel like it just washes the worries away."

"Yeah! Exactly!"

"Huh…"

He was starting to feel really wet, so Sparks took a step back and shook the rain off of his head. It didn't help much.

"Um… Sorry," Ziggy muttered, "I-I'll go back inside now…"

"No, no, no," Sparks quickly replied, holding up his paws, "No, it's fine. It's totally fine. You're not doing anything wrong."

"Oh…?"

"Yeah, I just wish you'd told me or left a note or something. I mean I know I was asleep, but…"

"Um… I can't write very good…" Ziggy remarked.

"Whatever, don't worry about it. It's fine, Ziggy. If you wanna hang out in the conservatory when it's raining, you go right ahead. This spot's open to anybody, so feel free to use it."

"Really…?"

"Yeah! I mean, I can't say it's something _I_ would enjoy, but…" Sparks punctuated his statement by shaking water off of his head again. He realized he really should have gone back and gotten a coat from his room, but he had just been so caught up in the relief of finding Ziggy.

When Sparks turned to look at Ziggy again, he had gone right back to his earlier position with his head tilted up to the sky slightly and his eyes closed. He looked rather zen, like a meditating Abra. It was an odd contrast with the Buizel's usual demeanour.

This didn't last long, though, as the two were both interrupted by a loud knock on the window. This time Ziggy heard it, and both he and Sparks turned to the glass door, which was still open.

"I was wondering where you two were," Carmen commented. The Braixen was standing just inside of the doorway.

"Oh. Hey, Carmen," Sparks said, "Sorry. I accidentally passed out in bed earlier…"

Carmen simply lifted a paw and gestured towards herself. "I want to talk to you two."

Sparks and Ziggy glanced at each other. Ziggy looked nervous all of a sudden, like a cub who had just been called to the principal's office. Sparks couldn't lie and say he wasn't feeling a touch nervous as well. He had a feeling he knew what Carmen wanted to talk about, and could only hope for the best.

The Raichu made his way back over to the door, with Ziggy following closely behind him. The two stepped up to the door in the dry area under the awning, which was when Sparks realized just how dripping wet the two of them were. He turned and gave the Buizel a look. "I suppose towels didn't cross either of our minds, hm?"

Ziggy blushed. "Uh… N-no, I didn't…think…"

Carmen held up a paw towards them and shook her head. "The gym's just down the hall. I'll grab some for you in a moment."

"All right. Thanks, Carmen," Sparks said.

"Now then," Carmen spoke up, addressing them both, "We have an important matter to discuss."

Out the corner of his eye, Sparks saw Ziggy visibly wince.

"Ziggy," Carmen continued, "You've been with us for a full month now. As we informed you when you first arrived, clients cannot remain boarded at the guild for more than a month. This is our policy." She paused and then continued, saying, "Unfortunately, I cannot override this policy for you."

The Buizel visibly deflated, casting his gaze downward and frowning in despair.

"However…" Carmen said, causing Ziggy to perk right back up, "Sparks here has proposed an interesting idea which would, theoretically, allow you to stay here. I think it is quite clear that staying here is the best thing for you right now, and all the other active team members I spoke with agreed with me on this."

Ziggy turned and gave Sparks a confused look, but Sparks just remained silent and let Carmen speak.

"So…after giving it some thought…" Carmen said, "I think that this is something we can go ahead with, though this is entirely dependent on how much you can work with us on this matter, Ziggy."

Sparks gasped. She said yes! It was the answer he had been hoping for. Eagerly, he turned to Ziggy as well to see how he would react.

Ziggy didn't look like he knew exactly what was going on, but Sparks could see he was trying his best not to look afraid. "Uh…I-if there's a way I can stay here…" He fidgeted on the spot for a moment before saying, "I'll do it…"

"You will?" Sparks asked excitedly.

"Um… What is it?"

Carmen took the reins and said, "You cannot stay here as a client. However, our policies allow for non-alumnus employees to live at the guild so long as circumstances render residence at the guild vital to continued employment, which should fit your situation quite well I should think."

Ziggy just gave Sparks a blank look, silently asking him to translate.

"You can live here if you work for us," Sparks simplified.

"W-work for you?" Ziggy's eyes grew wide as a look of trepidation passed over him, "I-I-I can't d-do what you guys do! I can't be a rescue Pokémon like Sparks and Kona and…"

"No, no, no," Sparks interrupted, "That's not what we mean. You wouldn't be an RSGA, you would just be an employee. What we want you to do is to just help out around the building with chores and stuff."

Ziggy blinked. "Chores…?"

"Yeah! Remember how you were helping Liz clean the dishes off the table?"

"Uh…Yeah…"

"Stuff like that. We've seen you help out others at the guild quite a few times already. It would just be more of that sort of stuff. And if you do that for us, then you can continue staying here and we can keep helping you."

Ziggy was silent and didn't reply. Sparks glanced over at Carmen, who was looking at Ziggy expectantly with crossed forelimbs. She had slipped into 'business mode' a touch, but Sparks couldn't blame her. It had to be a huge headache dealing with policies like this.

"Um…" Ziggy spoke up, causing Sparks to look at him again. He looked nervous but hopeful. "That's…all I have to do? Clean dishes and…stuff like that? And I can stay?"

"If you are willing to," Carmen answered, "Your residence at the guild will be provided in lieu of payment, but I'm guessing you don't mind that aspect."

"You didn't have much of a problem helping out our teammates before. Remember when you were picking stuff up for Lupe? Or when I dropped a bunch of stuff yesterday?"

"Yeah…" Ziggy replied, "I…I don't really mind that…i-if it's somebody I know, anyway. I…I liked helping Liz. She seemed really happy…"

"We can work with you on this to make sure you're comfortable, right Carmen?" Sparks said.

"To an extent, anyway…" she replied.

"Well…O-okay then," Ziggy said with a nod, "I'll do it. I'll…I'll do my best."

"Great!" Sparks beamed, "And don't worry, bud. Trying to do your best is all we ask for."

"Can I still stay in the same room?"

"Yes," Carmen replied, "Unless, in the unlikely event we gain three new members to the active team at once."

Sparks chuckled. "Yeah, _four_ new recruits and _I_ get kicked out. Don't worry about that."

"All right then," Carmen said with a nod, "Welcome aboard, Ziggy. I'll draft up some paperwork for you to sign. Hopefully no-one's gonna raise an issue about your legal name, but whatever…" She then extended her paw towards Ziggy. Sparks was delighted to see that Ziggy didn't flinch this time.

Ziggy took her paw and shook it. "Thank you, miss Carmen," he said, "Thank you so much."

Carmen then smiled for the first time during this exchange and said in a more friendly tone, "Our pleasure, Ziggy. We just want to help." She then took a step back and said, "Right. I'll go grab towels for you two."

"Thanks again, Carmen," Sparks said as she turned to leave. When it was just the two of them left, Sparks turned to Ziggy with a relieved smile. "See, buddy? We made it work."

Ziggy nodded in response, but then frowned for a moment. "I, uh…This is great, but…I'm a little nervous…"

"Oh, don't be nervous," Sparks said, giving him a pat on the back, "We're not gonna have you re-tile the roof or anything. Just like any new hire, we'll start small and maybe work up to bigger things later. I'm still in charge of you, technically, so I'll help you out as much as I can."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I'll see if Carmen will let me decide your duties for the first week or so."

"Okay…"

There was a moment of silence between the two, and then a thought occurred to Sparks. He turned to Ziggy again and said, "Are you…okay with this? The whole idea in general, I mean. Or did you just say yes because you could stay here?"

Ziggy immediately shook his head, to Sparks' relief. "N-no, it's fine. I don't mind. It sounds like…y'know, a good thing. A good thing I can do for you guys. Kinda like, y'know, as thanks…?"

Sparks smiled and said, "We'll appreciate the effort either way."

The two remained standing under the awning until Carmen came back with a pair of towels. They thanked her and quickly dried themselves off while Carmen headed off to take care of other business. Sparks ended up taking twice as long to dry as Ziggy did, which gave him a chuckle.

Once they were finally dry enough to enter the guild's interior, Sparks suggested to Ziggy that they take a walking tour around other parts of the building that the Buizel wasn't as familiar with. Ziggy didn't particularly like the notion, but Sparks reasoned that his 'chores' might end up sending him all over the building, so it would be better to start getting used to it. Ziggy finally agreed after Sparks promised he'd be there the whole time.

Sparks planned on taking Ziggy upstairs first, so they headed out to the grand staircase in the entryway. As they approached the base of the stairs, though, Kandice was just stepping out of her office nearby. She locked eyes with Sparks and immediately gestured for him to come over.

"Kandice?" Sparks called out.

"I want to speak with you, Sparks," she said, sweetly but firmly.

"Ziggy and I were just going to…" Sparks started to say. His words slowly died off as he noticed the insistent look in Kandice's eyes. "Ah, all right…" he relented.

"Sparks?" Ziggy asked quietly.

He turned to the Buizel and said, "Sorry bud, Kandice wants to see me. Can you wait in the common room until I'm done?"

"Uh, sure…" Ziggy said, though he looked concerned.

"I'll try not to be long."

"Okay…" Ziggy then left Sparks' side and walked through the doorway leading to the common room, leaving Sparks and Kandice alone in the hall. Sparks walked over to Kandice, who gestured for him to enter her office.

"Kandy, I'm fine," he said in a reassuring voice.

"I'm sure you are. We still need to talk," she replied.

"Yeah, all right…"


	10. Under the Hood

Chapter 10 \- **Under the Hood**

"All right, Ziggy boy!" Sparks said eagerly, "Let's get today started, shall we?"

Ziggy walked next to him, looking just a touch nervous. This morning before breakfast, he had signed his name on a very short, simple contract that represented the start of his employment at the guild. Starting today, Ziggy would be tasked with whatever chores could be done around the guild to help others out. Carmen had agreed to let Sparks delegate Ziggy's chores for a while until he got more comfortable with the whole deal.

"What do I have to do…?" Ziggy asked. It was after breakfast, the active team had left for the day, and Sparks was ready to put Ziggy to work.

"I came up with three tasks for you today," he said, "but one of them's really quick and easy, so don't worry. We're gonna start with something very simple."

Sparks then led Ziggy over to a small closet tucked away in the corner of the common room. He opened it up, searched around inside for a moment, and then emerged having produced a broom and a dustpan.

"Let's give this room a good clean!" Sparks proclaimed.

"Oh…" Ziggy said, regarding the broom for a moment. He checked over his shoulder at the room and then looked back at Sparks. "Okay, sure, t-that's fine."

"I'll help you out some, but I want you to do most of the work, okay? It's not just because this is your 'job', but hard work like this will help you out in the long run. Just let me know if you have any questions or anything."

Ziggy nodded. When Sparks held out the broom and dustpan to him, Ziggy took them in his paws. The broom Sparks has chosen was small enough for the Buizel to be able to use comfortably.

Thus, Ziggy got to work sweeping up the room. Sparks had to show him how to properly use the dustpan, but Ziggy got the hang of it quickly enough. The common room tended to get quite dirty, considering how many Pokémon occupied it. No-one on the team ever littered, but accidentally discarded trash tended to hide itself away here and there. Plus, the active team often came back dirty from the hard work of the outside world, sometimes without even realizing it.

After about five minutes had passed, Sparks asked, "How's it going?"

"Yeah, this…this isn't so bad," Ziggy replied while continuing to sweep.

"We might get you to do this job a couple times a week, actually."

"That's fine. That's okay."

Sparks glanced over at the Buizel and chuckled to himself. Ziggy looked rather comfortable doing what he was doing. He kept a quiet demeanour and simply focused on his task. He didn't seem too stressed about the work.

The Raichu sighed softly in relief. Not only had he managed to keep Ziggy within the guild where he would feel safe, but this was also at long last a good step forward in helping Ziggy. Sparks knew that sitting alone and having nothing to do was not good for stress or anxiety. Giving the Buizel something to do would definitely help.

* * *

"All right, so here's one of your more important duties, Zig."

Sparks was leading Ziggy up the stairs to the guild's second floor. His sweeping job was done and the common room looked nice and clean. They had finished at just past 11 o'clock, rested and eaten lunch in Sparks' room, and now it was time for Ziggy's next task.

"What is it?" Ziggy asked.

"When Danika heard about what you were gonna be doing, she jumped at the opportunity. Having a helping paw around her is exactly what she needs right now!"

"Danika?"

Sparks continued to lead Ziggy over to Danika's office on the second floor. Ziggy had only been there a few times. A few other guild workers were running about through the halls, which caused Ziggy to gravitate a bit closer to Sparks' side. Guild workers outside of the active team still made Ziggy feel nervous.

"Um… Sparks?" Ziggy spoke up.

"Yeah, bud?"

"…Why did you have to go see Kandice yesterday?"

Sparks nearly stopped walking, having been caught off guard by the question. "Ah, well…" he said, "Nothing much. She was just checking up on me. She saw how tired I was at breakfast, remember?"

"Oh…So, you're okay? You're not sick?"

"Not sick, no. Nah, I'm…just fine, bud."

The conversation ended as the two reached the door to Danika's room. Sparks knocked a few times to signify their arrival and then entered with Ziggy in tow. Danika's windowless computer room looked just as it had when Ziggy had first met her, only with the addition of hundreds and hundreds of papers and folders. They were stacked neatly, and in some cases not so neatly, on her desks, tables, and on any available floor space.

The bespectacled Sneasel turned in her chair and waved to the two. "Hello, hello! Nice to see you two again."

"Hi, Danika," Ziggy said quietly.

"Hey there. Sparky tells me you're gonna be working for me?"

"Um… I guess?"

"Sounds good! Come over here and I'll explain what we're gonna do."

Sparks stepped to the side and gestured for Ziggy to continue ahead. Ziggy stepped forward with a hint of nervousness. As he approached Danika, his eyes were drawn to the illuminated screen of the computer again. It was filled with boxes and tons upon tons of words and numbers. Sparks couldn't blame Ziggy for staring; the computer truly was a marvel to behold.

"So," Danika said, addressing Ziggy, "I'm in the middle of transferring all of these old files from the city archive into the new digital database. That means I basically have to manually type out whatever's written in every single one. It's _tons_ of fun!"

The Sneasel handed one of the old folders over to Ziggy, who opened it up. Sparks walked up and glanced over his shoulder, seeing that it was a citizenship record for a Bibarel that was dated more than 50 years ago.

"…What do I have to do?" Ziggy asked.

"I want you to help me sort them," Danika said with a smile, "Because the city doesn't know how to store things properly, everything is all mixed up and random here." She gestured to the endless stacks of papers and folders as she said this.

"Sort them…?"

"Yeah. Basically, I want you to pick a pile and then put them in alphabetical order. That makes it a lot easier for me to sort it into the digital database when I enter it." Danika paused for a moment, and shot a quick glance over at Sparks. "You, uh…do know alphabetical order, right?"

Sparks winced at the way she had phrased the question, but Ziggy simply nodded in response. Sparks was a bit surprised, and he wondered where Ziggy had picked up on alphabetical order while he was out on the streets.

"So, you think you can do that for me?" Danika asked as she adjusted her glasses.

"Uh… Yeah, I think so. I'll give it a try, at least."

"Great! You're gonna be a big help for me, I know it."

Ziggy glanced around at the sea of papers. "Do we have to do all of this…?"

"This and a whole lot more. The city's sending it over in boxes…" Danika replied. A moment passed before she realized what Ziggy had meant. "Oh! No, not all today. No, no, no. This is gonna take me weeks to finish, even with your help. I'm hoping we can make this a regular thing."

"Oh," Ziggy said, looking a little relieved, "Um… Yeah, I guess…"

Sparks looked over at Danika and said, "Just _how_ much are they sending over to you?"

"The entire history of Pokémon-kind? That's what it feels like anyway."

"How far back do these records go? Not all the way to when Radiant City was founded, right?"

"No, thankfully not _that_ far back," Danika said with a wave of her claw, "But they go back at least 100 years. That is a _lot_ of Pokémon to consider."

"But…didn't you say you were doing more than just citizenship records?"

Danika simply levelled a tired look at the Raichu.

"Oh, Dani, I'm so sorry…"

The Sneasel just chuckled. "Carve on my tombstone that I was a wild party Pokémon that was loved by everyone."

"Well… Hopefully it won't take that long…"

"Um… M-miss Danika?"

Sparks barely heard Ziggy's quiet voice, and he and Danika turned to regard the Buizel.

"Please, for heaven's sake, do not call me that," Danika said with an embarrassed laugh. She then cleared her throat and said, "What's up?"

"W-what's…in there?" he said, pointing at something with his paw. The two others followed his gaze and saw that he was pointing at the heavy-duty safe tucked away in the corner of her room.

"Oh, that's…" Sparks started to say, but hesitated. He knew what was inside the safe, but he also knew he wasn't allowed to say.

"Don't worry about that," Danika said plainly, "It's just a dumb old thing I was working with. It's nothing important."

"Is…" Ziggy murmured, looking at the safe nervously, "Is it supposed to…vibrate?"

"Vibrate?" Sparks and Danika both exclaimed simultaneously. They shared a quick look with each other, and then both quickly bolted over towards the safe. Ziggy squeaked in surprise and quickly shuffled out of the way.

The two stood next to each other in front of the safe, studying it closely. A sense of nervous excitement was coursing through Sparks' veins, and he knew Danika was feeling the same but twofold. The safe didn't look out of the ordinary, though. It wasn't moving, certainly not vibrating, and there was nothing unusual about it. Danika approached carefully and then laid her head on top of the safe, pressing her ear right up against the top. She silently listened for a moment.

Sparks gave her a questioning look, but she just shook her head. Danika stepped back over to her desk for a moment, so Sparks took a turn pressing his ear up against the safe. He couldn't hear or feel anything either.

Finally, Danika returned with the key to the safe. She and Sparks crowded in close to the safe, ostensibly blocking it from Ziggy's view as they did. She slowly, carefully pulled the door open so that they could both gaze inside. The two Pokémon's faces were briefly lit up by a dim blue glow.

After about a minute of silence, Danika closed and locked the safe. She turned to look at Ziggy and said, "Are you sure it was vibrating?"

Ziggy looked really confused and a little frightened at what had just happened. "Uhh…Y-yeah… It, like, buzzed against the metal."

"Are you _sure_?" Danika repeated, "Because nothing's vibrating right now."

"Y…yeah…" Ziggy wilted under her questioning, "I…I heard it while you two were t-talking…"

"It's okay, Ziggy. We believe you," Sparks cut in before Danika could get any testier.

Danika instead furrowed her brow and gazed off into space with a questioning look in her eyes. She looked perplexed. Sparks himself was feeling a bit mystified by Ziggy's claim. Vibrating? The thing hadn't done anything more than an ordinary rock would through the whole time he and Danika had been studying it.

"Okay…" Danika murmured in an unsure voice, "I guess I'll…make a note of that…and keep an eye on it?" She looked over at Sparks, who simply shrugged in response.

"What else can ya do?"

"Mmm…"

Sparks glanced over at Ziggy, who was looking back and forth helplessly between the Raichu and Sneasel. Sparks hoped he hadn't seen anything when they had opened the safe. It probably wasn't in anyone's best interests if he got involved with all of that.

* * *

"How're ya feeling, buddy?" Sparks asked.

"Uh…Good, actually…" Ziggy said as he sat next to the Raichu on the common room couch.

Sparks had left Ziggy in the care of Danika for a couple hours while he helped her sort her paperwork. The two had kept an eye and ear out for the safe to make any more vibrating noises, but nothing had happened. Sparks wasn't entirely sure if Ziggy had actually heard it make a sound, or if he had just imagined it. Maybe the computer had made a sound?

"Danika told me you were a big help today!"

"She…She did?"

It was later in the day, and dinner had already come and gone. A bunch of Pokémon at the dinner table had expressed their happiness that Ziggy was sticking around. He seemed to have grown on everybody, which was more than Sparks could have hoped for. Ziggy needed help from them, but he was also making friends.

After a bit of time had passed, Sparks' badge started to glow. "I'm ready for y'all," said the voice from within in a familiar twang.

"Thanks Liz," Sparks replied, "We'll be down in a minute."

Ziggy had been startled by the sudden voice, but was now looking at Sparks curiously.

"This is your last chore for the day," Sparks explained as he stood up and motioned for Ziggy to do the same.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Well, Kona was out really late on a job today, and he missed dinner. You probably saw him, he just got back in not too long ago. And, he still has work to do in his room. So, Liz cooked him some late dinner and she'd like you to deliver it to his room."

"Oh," Ziggy replied, intrigued, "Oh, okay."

* * *

Ziggy found himself walking the halls of the guild, Sparks a few steps behind him. He was carefully balancing a tray of food on his paws, covered by one of those dome-shaped silver things that he didn't know the name of. It was a little heavy, but nothing he couldn't handle.

It was the end of his first day helping out around the guild. He hadn't been expecting it when Sparks and Carmen had brought it up to him. The idea had sounded intimidating, maybe even a little scary, but he had said yes because the prospect of leaving this place terrified him even more.

Despite having difficulty sleeping last night due to worrying about what was to come, his first day on the 'job' hadn't been so bad at all. A little hard work wasn't really anything new to him. He had spent his life working hard just to survive.

Seeing Liz again had been nice. The Miltank had frightened him when he first met her, but she was actually nice and pretty funny.

"Almost there," Sparks said to him as they entered the main hall, "You holding it up alright?"

"I got it," Ziggy replied.

"Good, good… This is another thing that might become a regular thing. It'll make Liz's job a lot easier if she doesn't have to run back and forth all over the building."

"Heh… Yeah."

They were just about to head into the common room on their way to the dorms when a voice interrupted them. "Sparks! Hang on, I have a quick question for you."

Ziggy glanced back over his shoulder and saw that it was Kandice again. Unlike yesterday, she didn't look worried this time. That was relieving to see.

"Oh, okay," Sparks said to her, and then turned back to Ziggy. "You know where Kona's room is, right?" he said.

"Yeah," Ziggy answered, "I can go give it to him."

"Cool. I'll catch up with you."

Sparks then headed off towards the nurse's office, while Ziggy continued alone through the door to the common room. There were a few occupants in the room as he passed through. Rico and Terry were sitting on the couch together and said hello. Shay and Akash were at the table and asked how he was going. Nobody held onto him for very long, though, which was thankful because the tray of food was a little heavy.

Ziggy made his way over to Kona's room, right across from his own room. After carefully balancing the tray on a single paw, he gave the door a few knocks.

A moment later, the Dewott answered the door. "Oh! Hi, Ziggy!" he greeted. When he spied the dish, he asked, "Is that my dinner?"

"Uh huh," Ziggy said with a nod.

"Oh wow, and you're delivering it for Liz? That's nice!" Kona then stepped to the side and said, "Could you come in and drop it on the table for me, please?"

Ziggy then noticed that Kona's paws were full. He was holding a few garments of various colours. "Yeah. Sure," Ziggy said as he entered the room.

Once inside, he saw that Kona's closet was open and an even bigger collection of garments were tossed randomly on his bed. While Ziggy sat the plate down, Kona walked over to the closet with the garments he had been holding.

"Sorry," Kona apologized, "I have to meet an important client tomorrow and I was trying to decide what to wear."

"You have clothes?" Ziggy asked, wandering over towards the bed with a curious look. As far as Ziggy had seen, Pokémon rarely wore clothes unless it was for warmth.

"Yeah, just some stuff I picked up over the years. It's not like a formal meeting or anything, I just want to look nice…" Kona started putting the garments he was holding back into the closet.

Ziggy was about to ask if Kona wanted help putting the garments back when something caught his eye. It was a black article of clothing that had been tossed on top of Kona's pillow, away from all of the other more colourful outfits strewn on the bed. Ziggy picked it up and held it up before him, letting him see what it was.

It was a 'hoodie'; a light but warm coat that a bipedal Pokémon could wear around their torso, with long sleeves, a single zipper, and a pair of pockets on the front. Its defining feature, though, was the large hood at the top that could be worn over a Pokémon's head. It was completely black in colour, aside from a couple small, thin white stripes that adorned the shoulders.

"You like that?"

Ziggy nearly jumped out of his skin. He had almost forgotten that Kona was even there, and realized belatedly that he had picked up Kona's belonging without permission. He flushed in embarrassment and tried to gently place the hoodie back down on the bed. "S-s-sorry," he murmured.

"No, it's okay," Kona said, shaking his head, "You can take a look if you want."

"I can…?" Ziggy asked. When Kona nodded and smiled, Ziggy picked up the garment again and started to examine it.

"That was a gift from a close friend from a couple years ago," Kona explained, "but unfortunately, it doesn't fit me. It's too small."

Ziggy looked over at Kona, and then back at the garment. He could see what Kona meant by that. The Dewott was a bit too tall for the hoodie to fit him. He continued to study the garment closely.

"I don't want to get rid of it," Kona continued, "but I'm not sure what to do with it, honestly. I don't think I can get it altered to fit me."

"Um…" Ziggy spoke up nervously, "Can I…"

Kona, who had been hanging up more clothes in his closet, paused and looked at him. "Can you what, now?"

"Can I…try it?"

"Try…? Oh, you mean try on the hoodie?" Kona said, "Sure, if you want. I'm not sure it'll fit you either, though. It's too small for me, but it might be too big for you."

Ziggy didn't reply to that and instead simply unzipped the hoodie and started to put it on. He slipped his paws into the sleeves and then zipped it back up. There was a mirror next to him on the wall, so he turned to look at himself.

"Ah, it fits you better than I thought it would," Kona commented, "Still a bit big, though."

Indeed, the hoodie was slightly oversized for Ziggy's small frame. The sleeves were longer than his forelimbs, meaning they hung low and covered up his paws. The bottom of the garment, which was supposed to end at his belly, sunk down almost to his hind paws. However, while the hoodie was long in places, it was not loose. The hoodie still hugged his torso snugly, and his neck fit comfortably into the hoodie's collar. As he moved his limbs around, despite the slightly long fabric, it didn't feel terribly uncomfortable.

Ziggy reached back and pulled the hood up over his head. It too was a bit oversized, but didn't obscure his vision too much.

"Heh…" Kona spoke up, "It's a little big on you, but it does look good. Too bad it doesn't fit. Maybe I can find you one in your size?"

"Uh…N-no…" Ziggy muttered.

"Huh? 'No'?"

"No, um… I mean…" Ziggy wrung his paws nervously, looking at Kona through the reflection in the mirror instead of directly at him. "I just…I mean, I was wondering… Could I have this one…?"

Kona looked at him curiously. "You want that hoodie…?"

"I-I-I mean, i-if you want. I know it was a gift, but…"

"Are you sure?" Kona asked, tilting his head in confusion, "It doesn't fit you, though…"

"I know. That's okay…" Ziggy said, returning his gaze to his own reflection, "I…I want it like this."

"Well, if you really want it then sure. Feel free to take it. It was a gift so I didn't want to throw it away or anything, but if I can pass it on as a gift to somebody else then that makes me feel better about the whole thing." Kona then put down the clothes he was carrying and walked up behind the Buizel, saying, "But…why do you want a hoodie that doesn't fit?"

"Um…" Ziggy murmured bashfully. He averted his gaze, tilting his head away so that the hood cast a shadow across his face.

A moment of silence passed, and then Kona simply said, "…Oh."

Suddenly there was a knock at the door, which startled Ziggy. He turned to look at the door while Kona beckoned for whoever it was to come inside. The door opened to reveal Sparks on the other side.

"Hey Kona," he greeted, "Hey buddy. You get your delivery done? Whoa, what're you wearing?"

Ziggy pulled the hood forward so that it covered his head better, put both of his paws into the pockets on the front, and looked up at Sparks.

"It was mine, but it didn't fit, so Ziggy asked if he could have it," Kona explained as he walked over and stood next to Sparks, also turning to look at the clothed Buizel.

"Heh…" Ziggy chuckled self-consciously, shuffling his hind paws as he did. "D'you…think it looks okay…?" he asked.

Sparks studied him for a moment, and then that same look of realization appeared in his eyes as well.

"…Oh."

* * *

The following day, after dinner, Sparks and Ziggy were standing in the common room off to the side. Most of the active team were still sitting at the table chatting with one another, while a few had already departed to their rooms. It was still October, so there were still at least two hours of daylight left outside.

Sparks stood there with an unsure look on his face. Ziggy looked up at him nervously. The Buizel could feel Butterfree in his stomach and he couldn't stop anxiously fidgeting. Today they would be trying something different.

Today, they would be going outside.

Ziggy was wearing the hoodie Kona had given him. The hood was currently down, but it wouldn't be so for long. He already had his paws tucked into the pockets on the front, and he had tucked his tail up under the back of the garment so that it didn't stick out. It felt pretty warm to wear, especially in the air conditioned interior of the guild, but it probably felt nice and comfy out in the chilly late autumn weather.

Glancing down at himself, Ziggy felt a rush of emotions. In a way, he was pleased with what he saw. This was it. This was exactly what he needed. He looked over at Sparks, and saw the Raichu was studying his appearance as well. Sparks saw the same thing he did, Ziggy was sure.

Once the hood was over his head, casting a shadow across his face, only the golden fur on his hind paws would be visible. Almost all of his freakishly-coloured fur would be hidden from view.

It was just like the mud, only much cleaner.

"You sure you wanna try this, Zig?" Sparks asked him.

"I…Y-yeah," Ziggy mumbled, "Well, no. It's, like- I don't _want_ to do this. I don't _want_ to go out, but..."

"It'd be nice to know you had the option?" Sparks finished for him.

"Yeah…Exactly…"

Ziggy winced a little as he heard Sparks softly sigh. The Raichu had initially been quite opposed to the idea of him hiding his fur under the hoodie. He had said that this was the kind of thing he should be moving away from. However, he eventually came around on the idea somewhat. Sparks admitted that wearing the hoodie might help with taking baby steps. Still, though, that look of uncertainty hadn't left the Raichu's face.

At the very least, Sparks had made Ziggy promise that he wouldn't wear the hoodie all the time. 'I guess it's fine if you want to do this sort of thing for now, but _just_ for now, okay?' he had said, 'Make it your goal that, one day, you won't need it.'

"All right," Sparks said. He then approached the table with Ziggy behind him. Carmen had just left to do guildmaster stuff, but everyone else was just sitting and talking. Ziggy waited behind him. He could feel his nerves like shocks of electricity in his body. Everything was trying to tell him this was a bad idea.

"Hey guys," Sparks announced to the table, "Anybody wanna join in on a walk out in town?"

"You're heading out into the city?" Kona asked.

"Just for kicks. I don't have any errands out there or anything. Wanna tag along?"

Kona shrugged. "Sure, why not?"

"I'll come!" Lupe proclaimed from the other side of the table, "Can we stop by the treasure market on the way? I've been meaning to pick something up."

"Sure," Sparks replied. He turned to some of the others, most of whom politely declined. He then looked over at Terry and Rico and said, "You two wanna come with?"

Rico shook his head and said, "Love to, but we can't. We've already got plans."

"Both of you?" Sparks asked, just to confirm the answer was for both of them.

"Yeah," Rico replied, "We're both goin' somewhere. We won't be back until later." Terry simply nodded from behind him.

"Ah, oh well," Sparks said, "Some other time."

Eventually, it was decided that only Kona and Lupe would be joining. Once Sparks confirmed that no-one else was coming, he started to head towards the door while the Dewott and Vulpix followed him. Sparks grabbed his fanny pack from off of the couch and tied it around his waist.

"What are you doing tonight, Ziggy?" Lupe asked.

Ziggy had been silently shadowing Sparks the entire time, and had mostly been focused on his own nerves. He turned to Lupe, who was giving him the sweetest smile while she awaited an answer. Lupe was always super nice to him. He and her hadn't talked as much as he had with some of the other team members, but when they did she was always so pleasant to be around. It made Ziggy feel a little less nervous just seeing her smile.

"I, uh…" he spoke, "I'm…coming."

Lupe looked confused for a moment, and then very surprised. "You're…coming with us?" she asked.

Ziggy gulped and then said, "Uh huh…"

"Oh, wow…" Lupe replied, "That's…That's admirable."

Kona had also looked surprised when he heard this, but only for a few seconds. Kona had probably figured it all out, having been the Pokémon who gave him the hoodie in the first place. "You sure?" Kona asked.

Ziggy gulped again, and then said, "Y-yeah… I wanna…try, at least…" He then looked over at Sparks, who had finished with his fanny pack and was ready to go. "I'm just gonna stay with Sparks the whole time, though."

Sparks smiled at him and nodded. "That's fine, buddy. And just let me know if you want to come back. We can return any time you want."

"Okay," Ziggy said with a nod. With that, the four Pokémon then exited into the grand hall and made their way towards the large, imposing front doors of the society building. These were doors that Ziggy had only ever been through once, and that was during the time in the morning when the gates were closed and the public couldn't come in. Going through them now felt like an entirely different experience.

Sparks opened the doors. The three other Pokémon stepped out, while Ziggy hesitated in the doorway for a few seconds before stepping out as well.

The late afternoon atmosphere greeted him with a gentle breeze and a cloudy sky. Only the most distant hints of the eventual sunset could be seen. The temperature was nice and cool, and the hoodie actually complimented it well.

The plaza in front of the building was empty. The gates were open, but there was nobody there at the moment. Ziggy felt a chill run down his spine. Beyond those gates was the _public_. The world he had spent his entire life hiding away from. He tried to remain calm, tried to convince himself that the hoodie would be enough of a shield, but his nerves were doing their best to get the better of him.

Ziggy followed the group as they crossed the plaza and approached the gate. Ziggy stuck close behind Sparks for the time being. He knew that Sparks wouldn't want him hiding in his shadow the entire time, but he felt safer starting out like this. Once they were beyond the gates, Ziggy felt his fear rise even higher.

He couldn't see anybody in the immediate vicinity. The guild sat on top of a hill just outside of the city, so no-one would be there unless they were specifically going to the guild. At the bottom of the hill, though, was where the city sat. Ziggy could see the small figures of Pokémon off in the distance, walking the roads and going about their own business.

Normal, everyday Pokémon.

The Pokémon who all _hated_ him.

Ziggy gulped and pulled the hood tighter around his face and head. His muzzle was the same colour as a normal Buizel, so if that was the only part of him that could be seen then everything would be all right. He was just counting on the shadow of the hood obscuring the top half of his face, and for other Pokémon not to be paying too much attention.

"Shall we head down Ruby Street towards the market?" Sparks asked.

"Sounds good," Lupe replied.

"We can take Topaz Way on the way back," Kona commented, "That area always looks nice in the evening."

Sparks glanced back and gave Ziggy a concerned look. Ziggy figured that he and the Raichu were both thinking the same thing; the market was where they had first met. Memories of the altercations that took place in that spot flooded his mind.

Ziggy tried to tell himself that it would be okay, though. If he was wearing the hoodie, it would be fine. He had to trust that Sparks would steer clear of that Machamp's stall, and everything would work out okay.

"Don't wander too far, Zig," Sparks said, "I know you're still kinda new to the city. Don't want you to get lost."

Ziggy glanced up at Sparks, and then gasped. He had been so engrossed in his own thoughts that he hadn't even noticed that they had reached the edge of the city already. They were standing on a road, looking down another road leading in between the buildings into the heart of the large city.

And there were Pokémon. They were down on the street in front of him. They were walking the outer roads next to them. They were _all around him_.

Ziggy instinctively gravitated towards Sparks and hugged the larger Pokémon's side. His eyes darted around at all the other Pokémon, never remaining focused on a single one for more than two seconds. What was he doing? What had he _done_?! This was a bad idea. This was a terrible, horrible, awful idea!

"You okay, Ziggy?" Sparks asked in concern, "You wanna go back?"

While he wanted to immediately say 'yes', the rapid rising and falling of Ziggy's chest gradually started to slow. He started paying a little more attention to the passing Pokémon. There were a lot of them so it was difficult to focus, but Ziggy slowly became more aware of what was occurring around him.

Nobody was looking at him. A few Pokémon gave the group as a whole a passing glance as they walked by, but nobody spent more than a second looking directly at Ziggy himself. Nobody was staring. Nobody was pointing, laughing, screaming, shouting, or any of that horrible stuff.

It was working. No-one was noticing his fur colour.

"Ziggy?" Sparks prodded, giving him a tap on the shoulder.

As his breathing finally returned to normal, Ziggy turned to look up at the Raichu. Kona and Lupe were both looking at him in concern as well. Ziggy swallowed the lump in his throat, took a deep breath, and then said, "No…No, I think…I-I'm fine…"

"You sure? We can go back if you want."

Ziggy shook his head, taking care not to accidentally toss off the hood. "No…" he murmured, "It's working…Nobody can see…"

He saw Sparks take a look around as well, seeming to confirm this fact. "I suppose so…" he commented.

"Yeah…" Ziggy spent a moment self-consciously tugging at the hoodie, making sure it covered as much of his body as possible, and then took a step away from Sparks. He stood up a little bit straighter, though not enough to let the evening sun shine onto his face, and tried his best to act natural. Or, at least, his best guess at what acting natural was like.

Some Pokémon _were_ looking at him briefly. At first this made him a bit nervous, but he realized that they were probably checking out his hoodie instead of himself. Since most Pokémon didn't even wear clothes, he still did stand out a bit. Wearing a coat like this wasn't out of the norm, though.

"It's working…" Ziggy murmured to himself.

After a moment of silence from the group passed, Sparks eventually spoke up. "Well then, uh… Shall we continue?"

Ziggy turned to look at him, and then nodded. "Sure!"

Sparks then proceeded to lead the way, with Ziggy following behind him, and Kona and Lupe taking up the rear. He led them down the street leading into the centre of the city, away from the outskirts where the guild was. The more steps they took, the louder the din of city noise became.

Ziggy knew enough about the city to know that the market was only a couple blocks away from the city's edge. He realized soon enough that this was the street Sparks had taken him down when he had first gone to the Rescue Society. It was hard to believe more than a month had passed since then.

The Pokémon walking the streets all seemed busy in one way or another. If anybody did take a moment to look at his hoodie, it was an uncommon experience as most Pokémon were simply too engrossed in whatever they were doing. It was a very surreal experience to the Buizel, after his years spent hiding in the alleys and staying out of the public's eye.

It wasn't long before Ziggy realized he was paying more attention to his surroundings than to the other Pokémon. He was looking up at the buildings, reading the signs, and generally seeing what sights the city had to offer. He hadn't even done it intentionally; his eyes had simply started to drift.

Was this what it felt like to be…normal?

At one point a Grovyle, who had been running down the street at top speed, nearly crashed right into Ziggy and ended up roughly bumping him in the shoulder. "Oh my gosh! Sorry! I'm so sorry!" the Grovyle immediately apologized, "Are you okay? I didn't mean to hit you, I wasn't looking. Sorry!"

Ziggy had been shaken by the collision, and was worried that his hood had flown off. When he found that it hadn't, and he heard the Grovyle apologize so remorsefully to him, that brief spike of fear went away. He nodded to the Grovyle, who was in such a rush that he immediately turned around and took off again. Sparks and the others asked if he was okay, but nothing more came of the incident. He wasn't hurt, and nothing bad had happened.

The group eventually reached the market. Ziggy was hit with tons of familiar sights, as this was the area he had lived before Sparks had found him. He could easily pick out many of his old hiding spots, which brought with it a weird feeling of nostalgia. He subconsciously clutched his hoodie tighter against his body, feeling just a little more nervous. He could recognize the faces of many Pokémon he had stolen from before.

After Sparks asked if he was okay for about the millionth time that evening, he then looked around for a moment before pointing in one particular direction. "The treasure market's over there."

"Yup!" Lupe confirmed, and then she took point and started to lead the group. The market was full of all manner of stalls, arranged as best as possible into distinct groups. The party had entered near the food section, and there were sections for things like clothing, tools, materials, and even services.

As they left the food section, where Ziggy had previously spent most of his time, the Buizel started idly gazing at the various stalls and their colourful arrangement of merchandise. The market was pretty full, but not overly crowded. Almost every stall had at least one customer browsing the selection of items. Many of them were chatting with the stall owner. Ziggy saw a lot of smiling, laughing faces as he passed by. He could feel more eyes upon him, since they were in a more contained area, but still he didn't notice anybody _staring _at him.

Ziggy nearly walked right into Sparks' back, not having noticed that the Raichu had stopped. "Sorry, bud," Sparks apologized to him, "Kona wanted to check out that stall."

"Huh?" Ziggy turned to look and saw that Kona was browsing a stall that sold winter clothing such as coats and toques.

"I'll just be a moment," Kona called to them.

The bustling market continued to move around the trio while they stood and waited for the Dewott to finish his shopping. Now that he wasn't focused on walking anymore, Ziggy found himself a little more subconscious. He started watching all of the passing Pokémon again, carefully looking out for anybody giving him a weird look. Still, though, nobody was taking notice of him.

Once his nerves were calmed down again, Ziggy started to look at the nearby stalls. They were in an area with clothing sellers, so there were many colourful garments on display. Ziggy visually browsed through the scarves hanging by the stall Kona was at, and then his eyes began to wander to the other stalls. Pokémon were selling hats, coats, satchels, necklaces and all sorts of other various items. Before seeing Kona's hoodie, Ziggy hadn't given clothing even a passing thought. As time passed, he found himself slowly turning around, looking at stall after stall and eventually ending up looking at the stalls on the side of the street opposite the one Kona was at.

One garment in particular caught his eye. There was another stall on this side of the street that was also selling winter clothing. A rack was set up out front where scarves of various colours were hanging. One of them was a striped scarf, with alternating orange and light blue colours. Ziggy wasn't sure why, but this scarf in particular appealed to him for some reason.

"You like that one, sweetheart?"

Ziggy jumped in surprise, his heart leaping into his throat. He quickly looked up and saw that it was the owner of the stall who had spoken. It was a Braixen, just like the guildmaster, only this Braixen looked younger and a little bit shorter. She also had a scarf of her own around her neck.

The owner seemed surprised by Ziggy's reaction and said, "Sorry, hon! Didn't mean to startle you. I just saw you peekin' at my scarves."

For a moment, Ziggy was paralyzed with a familiar fear. The crippling, frightful sensation of meeting a stranger. He looked over his shoulder towards Sparks, but Sparks wasn't where he had been standing a moment ago. It took a few seconds for Ziggy to see that Sparks was now over at the same stall as Kona, and they were discussing something.

"You okay, sweetheart?"

Ziggy looked back at the Braixen. She wore a look of genuine concern, and was leaning over the edge of her stall to try and get closer to Ziggy's eye level. At first Ziggy continued to panic. Sparks wasn't nearby; he couldn't help. Then, however, he reminded himself that he was wearing his hoodie, and it looked as if the Braixen hadn't noticed his fur colour.

"H….Hi…" he managed to squeak out.

The stall owner smiled sweetly at him. "Hello, sweetie."

Ziggy relaxed a little more upon hearing the gentle tone in her voice. "Um… Hi," he repeated, and then said, "S-sorry, I was just…looking at…"

The Braixen giggled and said, "No worries. I could just see that you like that orange and blue one, right?"

Ziggy glanced at the scarf in question, and then nodded. "S-sorta…"

"That one's a personal favourite of mine," she explained, "I make a couple of those every month and I make sure I've got at least one for sale every day."

"…You _make_ these?" Ziggy asked quietly.

"I sure do," the Braixen said proudly, "Lovingly woven with the finest Mareep wool by paw. I've been making scarves since I evolved over ten years ago."

"Wow…" Ziggy whispered, "They're…very nice…"

"Well, aren't you just the sweetest?" she cooed. After a brief pause, she added, "I'm guessing you're not a customer, though?"

"Um…" Ziggy stammered, and then demurely shook his head.

"I thought so. You looked a bit young and I saw you traveling with that Raichu. That's okay, though. I'm just happy you like it." She sighed softly and said, "I wish I could give it to you for free, I really do. I think it would look great on you."

"Oh," Ziggy said, "N-no, that's okay. It's fine, I understand."

The Braixen giggled softly and said, "You're the cutest. Look at you in your adorable little hoodie."

Ziggy fidgeted. "Um…Thanks…?"

He then glanced over his shoulder again. Sparks was still distracted over at the stall, but Kona was now talking with the stall's owner. It looked like they were wrapping up their business, so Ziggy turned back to the Braixen and said, "I should go…"

"Aw, so soon?" she replied, "Well, it was nice to meet you."

"Yeah! Um, n-nice to meet you to…" Ziggy paused and then added, "It was nice to talk to you…"

"I'm Lola, by the way," she said, leaning down and extending her paw out towards Ziggy.

"Oh, uh, I'm Ziggy," he replied, accepting the pawshake offer.

While the two shook paws, Lola gave him a friendly smile and a quiet lighthearted giggle. Ziggy liked the way she smiled, and he felt strangely content after the interaction. Lola's eyes glanced downward, and her smile disappeared. Her eyes opened wider and she raised one eyebrow quizzically.

Ziggy didn't understand her change in expression until he looked down as well, and all he saw was the Braixen's black paw gently shaking his own paw.

His own _bright yellow_ paw!

Ziggy gasped and snapped his paw back as if he had burned it. He stashed it back into the hoodie's front pocket as quickly as he could as panic started to set in all over again. He nervously looked up at the Braixen, but her expression hadn't changed. She was looking at him. She had _seen_ it.

Without so much as a quick goodbye, Ziggy quickly turned tail and ran in the direction of Sparks as quickly as he could. Thankfully it was a short distance, though it felt like miles to him. He quickly darted right up to the large Raichu's side, catching Sparks off guard.

"Whoa! Hey, Zig. You okay?"

Ziggy looked up at him. Seeing the Raichu's concerned expression immediately helped calm him down a little. He stole a few furtive glances around, but didn't see any angry mobs with pitchforks. "Yeah, I'm…okay," he said softly.

It looked like Sparks was going to say something else, but the pair were suddenly joined by Kona. The Dewott was now holding a small bag with whatever he had purchased inside of it. "Sorry for the delay!" he announced, "Let's keep going!"

"Finally!" Lupe said in a jokingly exasperated tone, "It's practically midnight by now!"

"I bet you 15 Poké you're gonna take longer than I did," Kona said, sticking his tongue out at the Vulpix.

The two started to walk off, continuing their friendly banter. Sparks and Ziggy had to start following them, lest they lose them in the crowd somewhere. Ziggy followed close behind Sparks as they left the clothing section of the market behind, and neither of them said anything. Ziggy glanced over his shoulder, but he couldn't see the Braixen anymore. While this was reliving to see, he nonetheless let out a melancholy sigh.

From there, it didn't take long for the group to reach the treasure market. Ziggy's gloomy thoughts were immediately cast aside when he saw what this part of the market had to offer. His eyes lit up as he saw the colourful array of jewelry, stones, artefacts and other treasures out on display. The vibrant mix of colours was dizzying to behold. It seemed as if everything on display sparkled, whether it was meant to or not.

It was a smaller section of the market, with only a handful of stalls, but the colourful displays of these few stalls was enough to make the entire area shine like a radiant diamond.

Was this what the city was named after?

Lupe bounded over to the closest stall like an excited puppy. This had been her reason for joining the expedition into the city, and it was clear she was quite excited to be here. There was a huge smile on her face as she took in all of the beauty the stall had to offer.

"Gosh…" Ziggy whispered to Sparks, "She likes stuff like that? Jewelry?"

Sparks chuckled. "She likes shiny things. I think one of her long lost ancestors was a Murkrow. No, she's not big on jewelry, but she likes to put pretty things in her room from time to time."

"Oh…"

For a moment, the three stood on the street and watched Lupe browse the stalls, her eyes sparkling with joy the whole time. Kona eventually wandered over to one stall in particular that was selling lapidary art, leaving Ziggy alone with Sparks.

"She…might be a while," Sparks eventually commented, causing Ziggy to look up at him. The Raichu idly glanced around for a moment, and then an idea seemed to come to him. "Hey, Toby's stall isn't far from here," he said, "Why don't we go meet him?"

"Toby?" Ziggy asked. He didn't recognize the name.

"Toby's an old friend of mine," Sparks answered, "I was talking with him when you, uh…" Sparks stopped himself for a moment and then said, "When we met."

Ziggy wasn't quite sure how to respond to that. It was a memory he had tried to erase from his head on countless occasions, and going back to the 'scene of the crime' wasn't exactly at the top of his priorities. Sparks, however, insisted that Ziggy and Toby meet so eventually Ziggy nodded and decided to follow along.

Sparks led Ziggy just a short distance outside of the treasure market and eventually approached a small green and brown stall hidden in amongst the chaos of everything surrounding it. A somewhat bored-looking Kecleon was sitting behind it, though his expression brightened up when he saw Sparks approaching.

"Sparks! What's up? Don't usually see you out here this late!"

"I'm out for a stroll with some friends," Sparks replied as he walked right up to the stall.

"And the undeniable hunger for my entire stock of berries was too powerful to ignore," Toby said with a sage nod, "It'll be costly, but for you I can make it happen. Will that be cash or cheque?"

Sparks groaned softly. "Why are all my friends comedians…?"

Toby laughed at Sparks' remark. He then glanced over and took notice of the smaller Pokémon standing next to him. "Whozat? Your nephew?"

Ziggy was looking up at the Kecleon nervously. He didn't feel all too comfortable. Not only had his infamous theft against Sparks taken place right in front of this stall, with Toby there watching, but Ziggy had met Kecleon before in other places. The interactions were never pleasant.

Sparks glanced down at Ziggy and said, "Ziggy, this is Toby. He runs a berry stand here and is the main reason I don't collapse from exhaustion some days when I'm out here. He always has the best Pinaps."

Toby immediately leaned forward with interest in his eyes. "This is Ziggy?" he asked, "Really? _The_ Ziggy?"

"Wh-what…?" Ziggy murmured, shrinking back a little bit.

"Ah," Sparks interjected, "I've been telling Toby about what's been going on lately, so he knows about you already."

"Yeah!" Toby concurred, "He won't shut up about you! Haha!"

Ziggy looked up at Sparks. "R…Really…?"

"He's exaggerating," Sparks remarked.

"Only a little!" Toby retorted. The Kecleon then enthusiastically thrust out his claw towards Ziggy for a pawshake. "Nice to meet you! I'm Toby!"

Ziggy froze on the spot, staring at the outstretched claw in silence. He kept his paws firmly buried in his pockets. He had _just_ gone through this and had no desire to go through it again. "N-n-nice to meet you…" he said, unable to keep the nervousness out of his voice.

"Aren't you gonna give him a pawshake, Ziggy?" Sparks asked.

Ziggy winced like a scolded child. He almost shook his head and said 'no', but when he looked up at Toby again he remembered that Sparks had told the Kecleon about him. Toby already knew about his fur colour, most likely.

Still, though, Ziggy quickly checked to his left and right to see if anybody was paying attention to them. When the coast was clear, or as close to clear as he felt comfortable with, Ziggy withdrew one of his paws and grasped Toby's claw. What transpired was perhaps the world's fastest pawshake, after which his paw was hidden in the pocket once more.

Toby didn't say anything about his fur. At first Ziggy was surprised and pleased, but recalled that Toby was a friend of Sparks. Of course Toby wouldn't care. Sparks wouldn't be friends with someone who did care, right? That was just the kind of Pokémon that Sparks was. Ziggy glanced up at the Raichu, who was chuckling to himself a little but nonetheless giving the Buizel a happy smile.

Ziggy scolded himself for running away from Lola the Braixen so quickly. Sparks might not have been right next to him, but Ziggy knew that he wouldn't have been more than a second away if something had gone wrong. He told himself that he needed to hammer this fact into his head. Sparks was looking out for him. If somebody rose a stink about his fur colour, then it wouldn't be the end of the world if the Raichu was with him.

* * *

Lupe ended up taking longer to shop than expected.

At first, Sparks and Ziggy stuck around to talk to Toby, but eventually a large group of customers arrived at his stall and the conversation had to be cut short. It wasn't long before Sparks and Ziggy were both bored, so Sparks found Kona and told him that they would meet up later on Topaz Way.

In the interim, Sparks led Ziggy on a walking tour through the rest of the market. Ziggy stuck close by the Raichu's side the whole time, but his interest was definitely on his surroundings. Since they weren't stopping to buy anything, the array of products on display kept changing with every 'block' of the marketplace they went through. There was always something new to see.

There was a section all about cubs, with stuff like toys and small clothing items. Ziggy was enamoured by one stall in particular that was selling _huge_ stuffed Pokémon toys. There was an area for artists, with Pokémon selling paintings and all manner of homemade crafts. Sparks seemed to deliberately be taking him to the more colourful sections of the market.

"See anything you like?" Sparks asked him as they continued their leisurely stroll.

"Huh?"

"I think I can get away with buying you one little thing," Sparks said cheekily.

Ziggy thought about the question for a moment. He almost brought his paw up to his chin in thought, but caught himself before his paw came out of his pocket. He then glanced down at himself and realized he knew what he wanted.

"Mittens?"

Sparks paused and turned to look down at him. "Mittens?" he repeated.

Ziggy just nodded.

"…Oh, I see," he said, looking a little conflicted for a moment. "Uhh…I guess so. We can just consider it a coping tool for now…Plus you can use them afterwards for when it gets cold." He then smiled once more. "I don't really get cold in the winter. Y'know, 'cus I'm so fat… but my _paws_ in particular always get really cold. When winter comes around, a nice scarf and a pair of mittens are really all I need."

Ziggy gave Sparks an odd look at the 'fat' comment. Sure the Raichu was a lot bigger than he was, but he didn't look fat, at least not in the Buizel's opinion.

"All right then," Sparks announced, "We can make a quick detour back to the clothing market. Come along."

The two then made their way in a different direction, heading back to the area of the market that sold clothing. Ziggy was still looking at all of the stuff that was on display. They hadn't gone down this direction on their way in, so it was still all new stuff to see.

The more they went, the more interesting stuff Ziggy saw. He had already been paying less and less attention to the crowd of Pokémon around him, but by now he was hardly even noticing them. There was just so much to look at. Eventually his gaze even started to drift beyond the market, looking at the buildings and structures in the distance. The city rose up on small hills in some places, allowing him to see parts of the city that were even far off in the distance. In one direction, he could just barely see the sea as it drifted towards the horizon.

Radiant City was a huge city that had overwhelmed him when he had first arrived. He had spent his time hiding away in one or two places that he considered 'safe enough'. Now, though, he was just starting to realize that he had been missing out. Even from a visual standpoint alone, this city had a lot to see.

"Hey, Sparks?" Ziggy asked, "What's that building over there? The circle one?" A moment passed and Sparks didn't answer. Ziggy turned to look at him in confusion, and then gasped in horror.

Sparks wasn't there.

Ziggy whipped his head around in all directions, turning around completely on the spot. Sparks wasn't anywhere near him. He wasn't anywhere Ziggy could see. Sparks was simply gone.

Icy panic gripped the Buizel's heart. He must have accidentally wandered off while he had been distracted looking at all of the stuff in the market. Now Sparks was gone. He could be anywhere in this crowd of Pokémon. Ziggy didn't even know which direction the clothing market was in from where he was standing, so he didn't even know where to look.

Worse, Ziggy couldn't call out Sparks' name. Ziggy did _not_ want to call attention to himself. The last thing he wanted to do was shout loudly and become the centre of attention.

He was left standing in the middle of the market, all alone, as crowds of Pokémon moved around him. Suddenly that fear of strangers came back to him. He felt that sensation of being surrounded by unknown Pokémon again. Pokémon that hated him. Pokémon that he had to hide from. Oh, this was bad. This was really, really _bad_!

Ziggy tried his best to remain calm and continued to search for the Raichu in the crowd. Sparks had a relatively large frame, so he shouldn't be too hard to spot in a group. Besides, as soon as Sparks noticed that Ziggy had gone missing, he would start doing his best to find him, and _he_ wouldn't be afraid to shout.

Right?

…Right?

Fear and self-doubt started to cloud Ziggy's mind. He felt alone, unsafe and exposed out here in the middle of the market. A couple of Pokémon were looking at him now. By standing still, he was standing out, and Pokémon were starting to notice him. Ziggy berated himself for not paying attention to where he was going. Where was Sparks? Where were Kona and Lupe? Could any of them help him, or was he just screwed? Would he have to run away and hide in the alleys until Sparks found him? _Again?_

Ziggy gasped. He had just barely caught sight of the long, distinctive shape of a Raichu's tail within the crowd of Pokémon. "Sparks!" he called out as loudly as he dared.

The tail slipped out of sight. Sparks hadn't heard him. So, with no other choice, Ziggy immediately took off running in the direction he had gone. He quickly dashed behind the row of Pokémon that were in front of where he had last seen Sparks' tail and looked around the corner, catching sight of the back of the Raichu's head. Sparks had moved through a crowd and gone through an opening to the left.

Ziggy ran in the same direction, but hesitated for a moment. That same crowd of Pokémon were in the way. They weren't blocking the way, but he was going to have to squeeze past them. He tried to look between them to see if Sparks had noticed him, but only caught a few glimpses of his tail again.

So, Ziggy mustered up his courage and approached the group of strangers. He murmured, "Excuse me…" and weaved through them as seamlessly as possible. Ziggy belatedly realized this wasn't anything new for him. He was used to running away through crowds and cluttered alleyways.

Once he was past the blockade, he went through the opening and zipped around the corner. There, he saw Sparks walking ahead of him. Finally, there was nothing in between the two of them, so Ziggy hurriedly ran up behind him. "Sparks! I'm here!"

The Raichu stopped and turned around to look at him. Ziggy slammed on the brakes and gasped.

It wasn't Sparks. This Raichu looked a lot younger, and Ziggy only now noticed that he was shorter and leaner than his friend and protector. The Raichu was giving him a perplexed look that betrayed the fact that he had no idea who this hooded Buizel was. "Huh…?" he replied in confusion.

Ice ran through Ziggy's veins. He shrunk back under his hood, hoping the Raichu hadn't seen his fur. "S…S-sorry…" he whimpered.

The unknown Raichu raised an eyebrow and gave him an odd look for a moment, and then simply shrugged and walked off.

Ziggy watched the Raichu walk down the street, his heart hammering in his chest, until the Raichu turned another corner and Ziggy was left alone. He then took stock of where he had ended up and gasped again as he realized just how 'alone' he was.

It was a dark, empty road with door-less buildings on either side. Ziggy wasn't in the market anymore. He had chased the Raichu right out of the marketplace and onto some back street that led behind the buildings. The only notable things here were a few trash bins and discarded cardboard boxes.

Ziggy quivered on the spot and struggled to breathe as he realized he had gotten himself into even _deeper_ trouble. Being without Sparks was one thing, but being utterly alone in the city with no-one around felt much worse. Being in the city alone like this usually meant hiding in alleyways and being covered from head to toe in mud, and it was something he hadn't done in over a month.

The nervous Buizel gulped and backed up a few paces. "O-okay…" he whispered to himself, "I didn't come too far out…I-if I turn around, I'll be back at the market…"

Before Ziggy could set his plan into motion, though, he yelped as he felt his hood get roughly yanked off of his head. He tried to quickly turn around and face his attackers, only to trip over his own paws and end up falling down on his rump.

"Haha! Y'see, Omar? Wha'd I tell ya?"

Ziggy looked up and saw two Pokémon towering over him. The one who had spoken was a large Graveler, while the other was a Sandslash.

"You was right, Gunther," the Sandslash replied, "He _is_ a freak!"

The two larger Pokémon glared down at the terrified Buizel with wicked sneers. Ziggy recoiled in fear and tried desperately to pull his hood back over his head, despite there being no point.

"Sneaky li'l freak thought he could hide under dat hoodie," Omar jeered, "Gotta bring those big freaky yellow paws out for a pawshake though, don't'cha?"

Gunther let out a loud bellowing laugh and loomed over Ziggy even more. "Bet he thought he could just slip by wit' no-one noticin'…"

Ziggy trembled on the spot, internally screaming at his body to get up and run away. Unfortunately, he found himself frozen in fear. His worst nightmares were playing out exactly as he had envisioned them. Someone had figured him out. Someone had seen his paws during the pawshake. Now, someone was coming after him.

"Maybe you didn't get the memo," Omar said, now directly addressing Ziggy, "The marketplace's for _Pokémon_…not whatever you's is…"

"S…Sorry…" Ziggy whispered.

"Where the hell'd you even come from?" Gunther demanded, "Dere ain't no freaks livin' in Radiant City. Dis is a freak-free zone, y'understand?"

Ziggy gulped and slowly managed to inch back along the ground. The two larger Pokémon had gradually been getting closer to him.

"'Ey!" Gunther then proclaimed, "Sun ain't set yet. Let's rip off dat jacket and see how much he sparkles!"

A terrified squeak slipped out of Ziggy's throat.

"Nah," Omar said with a casual shrug, "_I_ say we give him a strong reminder that his kind ain't…welcome…here…" With those last three words, Omar leaned in closer and closer to Ziggy, his tone getting lower and darker.

Ziggy's heart skipped a beat and his breath caught in his throat. They were going to fight him. They were going to beat him up!

"Not a bad idea, Omar," Gunther commented, and then proceeded to crack his knuckles.

"S…S…" Ziggy whimpered. He wanted to run away; it was usually what he did to escape trouble. However, he knew that Graveler could roll along the ground at really high speeds. Even with how fast he was, he knew he couldn't outrun a rolling Graveler. Memories of how Sparks had caught him in the first place were at the forefront of his mind.

"Keep watch while I rough 'im up a li'l…" Gunther said as he took a dominating step forward.

"S-Sparks…! Sparks!" Ziggy was finally able to force himself to call for help. He heard his voice echo against the surrounding buildings. "_Sparks!_"

Omar snickered and said, "What's he doin' now? Cryin' out for his daddy?"

"Pfft! No!" Gunther countered, "Whaddaya stupid? What father would care about a freak like 'im?"

"Good point."

As the Graveler took another step towards him, the Rock-Type's shadow now blanketing him, Ziggy cried out once more in a panicked voice. "_SPARKS!_"

A couple seconds passed before a voice called out his own name, though it felt like an eternity. Ziggy looked past the two offending Pokémon and saw the wonderful sight of Sparks rounding the corner and immediately dashing in their direction. He swiftly sidestepped the two and placed himself between the two parties before they could even react. "Hey, hey, hey! Back up a bit, guys. What's going on here?"

The Sandslash took a single step backwards but no more, and the Graveler didn't move. "Who the hell're you?!" Omar demanded.

"Hey, _easy_ now…" Sparks said as he held up his paws defensively. He stole a glance over his shoulder and said, "You okay, Zig?"

Ziggy was still sitting on his rump, trying to get his panicked breathing under control, but he did nod at Sparks. The relief he felt now that Sparks was with him again was indescribable. Everything would be okay now. Sparks would protect him.

Omar was squinting his eyes at Sparks' chest, and then he said, "Oh, it's one of _you_ losers!" Ziggy realized that the Sandslash had noticed Sparks' badge. "What?" Omar continued, "Y'gonna try an' stop me with love and friendship or whatever?"

"What?" Gunther asked his companion.

"It's one of them yuks from the whatever society. Self-righteous whackos who think dey own this whole town…"

"All right," Sparks said calmly, "All right, let's relax. Okay? I don't know exactly what was going on here, but at the very least you were making my friend uncomfortable. Why don't we both just walk away and go on with our lives?"

Omar spit. He actually spit on the ground, just barely missing Sparks' hind paw. "Shoulda figured you'd be 'friends' with this freak. Frankly, I don't give a crap. Me an' my associate here were just about to teach this kid a lesson about where freaks like him do and do not belong. So get outta the way unless you want in on this beatin' too…" The Sandslash was glaring up at Sparks, even though the Raichu was taller, and holding up one of his claws threateningly.

Ziggy saw Sparks tense his body and take another step back. He leaned down a bit lower in a defensive position. "…That won't be necessary," Sparks said slowly, "There's no need to do something arrest-worthy, all right?"

"P'hah!" Gunther bellowed, "I'd like to see you try an' arrest us, 'grandpa'!"

"You got two choices, fatass," Omar said threateningly, "Move outta the way, or get your ass handed to ya."

As Sparks continued to hold his ground, Ziggy nervously flitted his gaze between Sparks and the two Pokémon. Vivid memories of his encounter with the angry Clefable were fresh in his mind. At first he was scared, worried that these Pokémon would hurt him or Sparks like the Clefable had tried to do. He tried to relax, though, and remember just how easily Sparks had subdued the Clefable. Ziggy had to remind himself that Sparks was a lot stronger and better practised in fighting than he was.

Sparks took another step back and got down on all fours, an even more defensive pose. Ziggy inched back to give him room, but that's when he noticed that something was off. Sparks didn't have the same confident, defiant expression that he wore when facing the Clefable. It almost looked like Sparks was worried, or even afraid.

"Back…Back off," Sparks said. Ziggy had noticed the brief stutter. He looked at Sparks in confusion to try and figure out what was wrong, and then gasped when he noticed something alarming.

Sparks was shivering.

"Heh," Omar chuckled, standing up to his full height which was just slightly higher than Sparks' prone form, "You really think you can take the both of us? Y'know, you society idiots are all the same, and yer just like the rest of this dumb city and the whole damn world. Always lookin' for peaceful ways to end things. Yeah, just tie 'em up, toss 'em in jail. Whatever.

"Look, pal. I'm gonna clue ya in on somethin' that you seem to have forgotten. Somethin' _everyone_ has forgotten." He raised his claws, as well as his voice, and proclaimed, "We are all _Pokémon_! And y'know what? Pokémon are supposed ta fight each other! Pokémon are supposed to have battles! _Pokémon are built for fightin'!_ So, you better get ready, 'cus I'm ready ta _fight_!"

Ziggy was looking at Sparks in concern. Something was really wrong with the big, strong Raichu. He was gritting his teeth, breathing quickly, and shrinking back in a very cautious, defensive way. Something had rattled him, and Ziggy had no idea what it was.

"S-stay back!" Sparks barked suddenly, "I don't want to fight you. There doesn't have to be violence!"

Gunther laughed at this. "Look at 'im, Omar! He's _scared_!"

Omar laughed as well and gave Sparks a sneering look. "See, that Society's made you all soft!"

At this point, Ziggy could see sweat on Sparks' face. His discomfort was becoming more apparent. Why was he doing this? Why was he acting scared? Sparks wasn't scared of anything! The Raichu was breathing heavy and fast now. It looked like he was about to panic, which in turn made Ziggy start to panic.

"Ugh," Omar said as he rolled his eyes, "Forget this. You ain't worth it. Just stay outta the way while we deal with the freak." The Sandslash then stepped forward, using his claw to roughly push Sparks out of the way.

The moment Omar's claw made contact with Sparks, it was as if a switch had been flipped. Sparks immediately dove forward, tackling the Sandslash to the ground. They landed in a heap, Omar grunting as the wind was knocked out of him. Sparks didn't give him a chance to retaliate before pulling back one of his paws, balled up into a fist. Ziggy's eyes grew wide as his paw started to dimly glow, and then Sparks socked the Sandslash right in the cheek with a perfectly aimed Mega Punch.

By this point, Gunther was now retaliating and getting ready to attack. Sparks jumped off of Omar, but not before twisting slightly in the air. This brought the flat end of his long tail around to smack Omar in the head, quickly bringing the Pokémon from 'dazed' to 'knocked out', or at least close to it.

Gunther tried to take a swing at Sparks, but Sparks was already in the air. He jumped over the Graveler's obviously telegraphed punch. Ziggy watched in awe as Sparks twisted his body around expertly in midair, bringing his hind paws around so he could use them to mercilessly kick the Graveler in the face repeatedly. The powerful Double Kick made Gunther cry out in pain and topple over backwards.

Sparks landed on the ground and pulled his fist back once more. He growled softly as it started to glow a muted red-orange colour. While Gunther tried desperately to right himself, Sparks concentrated and his fist glowed just a bit brighter. Then, finally with a loud cry, he stepped forward and thrust a Dynamic Punch right into the Rock-Type's side.

Gunther rolled back from the impact and struck the wall of the building, instantly dazed and knocked out. Sparks stood there for a moment, panting heavily and keeping his paws at the ready for any further attacks. He looked over at Omar, but the Sandslash was out cold as well.

"Oh my gosh…" Ziggy murmured, completely awestruck by what he had just seen, "That…That was _incredible_, Sparks!"

Sparks didn't say anything. He simply stood there catching his breath.

Ziggy sat up straight and put his hood back on, carefully putting it back into place to avoid anyone else seeing him. "That was so scary…" he said as he stood up, "Thank you Sparks. You're amazing…!" Still, the Raichu didn't say anything. He still hadn't moved at all since the fight had ended. Ziggy frowned, sensing that something was wrong. "Sparks…?" he ventured cautiously as he came around to Sparks' front side.

The Raichu was staring, unmoving, at the downed Sandslash. Ziggy gasped when he saw that Sparks had an utterly horrified expression. He looked as if he had seen a demon, simply standing there and staring with a thousand-yard, wide-eyed stare. His breaths were quick and shallow.

"S-Sparks…?" Ziggy murmured nervously. Why did he look like this? The fight was over and the danger had passed, so why did Sparks look even more stressed than he had before?

A quiet, shuddering breath slipped from Sparks' throat.

"Sparks? W-what's wrong?" Ziggy said. He placed a paw on Sparks' shoulder and gave him a gentle nudge. It looked as if the Raichu hadn't even noticed. "S-Sparks can we get out of here? …_Please_?" Ziggy took a glance at the other two Pokémon to see if he could see what the problem was, but they both looked the same; knocked out and no longer threatening.

"No…" Sparks whispered.

"Huh? What…?"

"No, no, no…"

Ziggy recoiled slightly as Sparks started to shake his head from side to side. It started slow but gradually started to get faster and more frantic, with Sparks continually saying 'no' the whole time.

"S-S-Sparks?!" Ziggy squeaked. He was starting to panic all over again.

"No, please!" Sparks suddenly exclaimed. He started clutching his head with his forepaws as his whole body started to visibly shiver. "No! No!"

Ziggy cried out in surprise when Sparks' knees buckled and the Raichu collapsed onto the ground, ending up laying on his side while still clutching his head. His breathing got quicker and shallower with every passing second, until before long he was sucking in air with loud, wheezing gasps.

The frightened Buizel took a few steps back and stared in confused fear at Sparks. The Raichu was writhing on the ground now, clutching his head like it was going to explode, and letting out short, painful-sounding cries. Ziggy had _no_ idea what was happening. It looked like there was some creature inside of Sparks' head trying to burst out. Was he having a panic attack? How could Sparks have a panic attack like this? It didn't even seem to be in the realm of possibility.

"I'm sorry!" Sparks exclaimed through his wheezing breaths, "I-I'm sorry! Please! I'm so sorry!"

"Sorry for what? What's _wrong_?!"

Sparks started to cry. It was the most terrifying sound Ziggy had ever heard in his entire life.

"Sparks?"

Ziggy looked up in surprise. He recognized that voice. To his immense relief, he saw a familiar-looking Dewott peering around the corner of the street in their direction.

"Kona!" he called out, "Kona, help!"

Kona's eyes zeroed in on Sparks and he immediately broke out into a sprint. He was at the Raichu's side in seconds. "Sparks!" he exclaimed, immediately getting onto his knees next to him, "Sparks, relax! Relax! You're okay!"

Still, it seemed as if Sparks wasn't even aware that Kona was there. His behaviour didn't change.

"Sparks, calm down. Calm down," Kona repeated, using a firm but gentle tone of voice. He leaned in and grasped Sparks' forepaws to keep him from thrashing about. "Hey, hey… Sparks. Sparks, it's Kona. It's your friend Kona, okay? I'm here, Sparks. It's Kona."

Ziggy watched from the sidelines, terrified and confused.

"Sparks? Spaaaarks?" Kona said, using a relaxing tone of voice as if he were trying to calm a cub having a tantrum, "Sparks, calm down. It's okay, Sparks. I'm here with you, Sparks. It's Kona, your friend. Sparks, can you hear me?"

"Kuh…" Sparks coughed, "K-Kona…?"

"Yes, Sparks. It's me, Kona. I need you to breathe, okay? Remember to breathe, Sparks. Breathe."

Sparks moaned and shivered. He tried to take deep breaths but ended up doing the same quick, rapid breathing as before.

"Sparks? Sparks?" Kona kept repeating the Raichu's name over and over, maintaining a calm, relaxing tone of voice the entire time. Kona looked concerned, but he didn't seem confused by what was happening. It definitely looked like Kona had seen this before.

Finally, Sparks' panicked breathing managed to slow down a bit. He stopped thrashing about and ended up simply laying on his side, though he was still shivering and breathing more heavily than normal. Ziggy saw Sparks' face and was frightened by what he saw. Sparks looked like he had seen the end of days, his whole face covered in sweat.

Kona then let go of one of Sparks' paws and used his free paw to tap his badge. "Kandice? Where are you?"

It took a short moment before the Audino's voice replied, "I'm in my office. What happened?" Her tone of voice was immediately concerned.

The Dewott took a moment to look up, and Ziggy realized he was looking at the street signs. "I need you out on Pyrite Lane immediately. Sparks is having an episode."

"Oh no," Kandice replied with dread, "Have you calmed him?"

"As much as I could."

"I'll have Tora fly me over. I'll be there in a few minutes. Stay with him."

When Kona's badge dimmed and Kandice's voice disappeared, there was finally a moment of relative quiet. The only sound was the still rapid breathing of Sparks.

"You're okay, Sparks," Kona said, leaning in close to the Raichu and speaking softly, "You're okay. Everything's fine."

"K-Kona…" Sparks murmured in a trembling voice, "I didn't…I-I didn't mean to…"

"You're fine, Sparks. Don't worry." Kona then perked up as if he had remembered something and looked up. He took note of the two unconscious Pokémon, and then tapped his badge again. "RSGA speaking, requesting police presence on Pyrite Lane ASAP."

Ziggy couldn't take anymore. He had been watching in fear this whole time and had to speak up. "K-Kona? What's…?"

"Officers en route," a mechanical voice emitted from Kona's badge.

Sparks started to moan and groan again, so Kona took hold of his second paw and held him still again. "Hey, buddy. Relax, all right? I'm still here. Everything's okay."

Before Ziggy could speak up again, he was alerted to the sound of feathery wings. He and Kona both looked up to see Tora flying over the roof of the nearby building and starting to descend down to them. Kandice was riding on her back. Once the Pidgeot landed, Kandice practically jumped off of her and rushed over to Sparks' side, her bag of medical supplies jangling against her side. At about the same time, Lupe had managed to find them and had also run over to Sparks' side.

Ziggy simply remained standing there, clutching the inside of his pockets in anxiousness. He had no idea what was going on, nor did he know if Sparks was going to be all right. Was he hurt? Everyone was busy tending to him, so nobody had the time to tell him what was wrong.

"Tora!" Kona called out.

"Yes?" the large avian replied.

"Can you take Ziggy back to the society?"

"Sure," Tora said with a nod. She then turned her attention over to the Buizel and walked over.

Ziggy glanced up at Tora nervously. She was a very large Pokémon, able to safely carry anybody on the active team besides Sparks. As such, though, Ziggy was quite intimidated by her and still felt nervous in her presence. The two hadn't had much of a chance to get to know one another thus far either.

"Hop on, Ziggy," she said, trying to offer him a reassuring smile, "Let's get you back where it's safe."

"Wh…W-we're gonna f-fly?" Ziggy whimpered.

Tora nodded. "It's perfectly safe. Just hold on tight, and even if you do fall off I'll be able to catch you. Trust me, I've done this a million times with Pokémon much larger than you."

Ziggy gulped. It was a frightening idea to him, but the desire to get back to the society building was stronger. He had grown to trust most of the other members of the active team, so he just told himself that he could trust her too.

Tora squatted down and angled herself towards the ground so that Ziggy could climb up onto her back. It was not the most graceful act, and Ziggy was constantly self-conscious that he was hurting her by pulling on her feathers, but she didn't complain. The Pidgeot then stood up again, forcing Ziggy to grip tightly so that he didn't fall off.

"Ready?" she asked.

Ziggy glanced over at the other group of Pokémon. "What about Sparks?" he asked worriedly. Sparks was still laying on the ground.

"He'll be fine," Tora replied, "Kandice will take care of him. She always does."

Before Ziggy could question this, Tora suddenly extended her wings. In the blink of an eye, Tora had taken to the air and left the ground behind. Ziggy yelped and held on tight. His hood immediately flew off, but he barely had the presence of mind to care about it as their altitude quickly increased.

He wanted to ask Tora what was wrong with Sparks. Every time he tried to open his mouth, though, Tora shifted in the air and his focus was immediately drawn back to holding on and making sure he didn't fall off and die. Riding on the back of a Pidgeot was simply not the best time to have a conversation.

For now, all he could do was wait until Sparks was brought back to the society building, hopefully safe and sound. Ziggy was incredibly worried about his Raichu friend, and he knew he wouldn't be able to stop worrying until Sparks himself told him that he was okay.


	11. Broken

Chapter 11 \- **Broken**

Ziggy was really worried.

He was curled up into a tightly wound ball of stress on the couch in the common room. There was nobody around. Tora had gone back to where Sparks was in case she was needed, and nobody else was in the room at the moment.

What in the world had _happened_?! He was still trying to wrap his brain around the bizarre events that had unfolded on the catastrophic visit to the market. The fact that he had been accosted by thugs solely because of his fur colour was nothing new. It had been frightening, but at least it had made sense. Then, just as he had done so in the past without issue, Sparks had stepped in to save the day.

Then he had simply self-destructed. Ziggy had no words to explain what he had just seen, and no-one had had the presence of mind at the time to tell him about it. He wished he had stuck around to get some answers, but he had been so scared at the time that all he wanted to do was get back to the building where it was safe.

Now he was simply left to worry. Was Sparks still out there, laying on the cold ground and suffering from whatever it was? Had he been hurt? Had things gotten worse?

Was Sparks…dying?

He tried not to think of such dark things, but he couldn't help but worry anyway. What was he going to do if Sparks got hurt or…worse? Ziggy had come to depend on Sparks, not to mention building a deep sense of trust in the Raichu. Sparks was the first Pokémon in Ziggy's life that he felt safe around. Sparks had promised to be there for him, and to protect him, and to keep him safe.

Finally, after what had felt like eons, Ziggy heard a commotion coming from the entry hall. He leapt off of the couch like he had springs in his paws and dashed over to the door in a matter of seconds. He quickly opened the door without hesitation.

In the grand entryway, he first saw Kandice. The Audino looked stressed and focused, and was presently making her way across the length of the hall towards her office next to the stairs. Ziggy turned to address her, and as he did he caught sight of a Raichu tail slipping into Kandice's office. Sparks! Was he okay? He was walking at least, it seemed like.

"Um…K-Kandice?"

The Audino glanced over her shoulder at him. "Oh. Hi Ziggy. I can't talk right now, sorry."

"B-but…!"

"He's going to be fine," Kandice said in a hurried voice, and then promptly shut the door to her office.

Ziggy stood there motionless, a mix of emotions running through him. She had said he was fine, which was relieving to hear, but why didn't _she_ seem relieved?

He then heard the main doorway close with a much louder sound, and turned to look in the other direction. Kona and Lupe were standing in the doorway looking at one another. They both wore frowns.

Kona noticed him first. "Oh, Ziggy…" he spoke up, "You okay?"

"Uh…Y-yeah, I guess," the Buizel replied.

"You sure? I heard there was a fight."

Ziggy shook his head. "They didn't hurt me…"

"All right, well that's good."

A moment of poignant silence passed, which made Ziggy feel jittery. He wanted to shout, 'Would _someone_ please tell me what's going on?!'

"I'm going to go make some tea," Lupe said, to which Kona nodded. She left his side and walked past Ziggy, heading through the doorway on the other side of the hall. She gave him a nod before disappearing, and then she was gone.

Kona then walked over to him and stood just outside the doorway. "Sorry, Ziggy," he apologized, "I bet you're probably pretty confused."

Ziggy could only nod.

Kona then suggested they go talk in his room so they would have some privacy, to which Ziggy agreed. It was a short walk over to his room, and before long they were behind its closed door. Kona went and sat on his bed, patting the spot next to him and inviting Ziggy to join him.

"So…" Kona said with a sigh, "First of all, Sparks is okay. He's not hurt. He's just…recovering with Kandice right now."

Again, Ziggy simply nodded. Kandice had already told him this, and these were not the answers he needed.

"I wasn't there when this all happened, obviously," Kona continued, "So, those two goons followed you and were acting aggressively towards you. Then, Sparks stepped in to defend you and had to fight them off. Is that right?"

"Uh huh…"

"He fought them with stuff like punches and kicks, right? Fighting-type moves and such?"

"Yeah."

He nodded curtly and said, "That's what I figured." He paused and took a breath. It seemed like the Dewott was trying to figure out how to explain things.

"Please, Kona," Ziggy spoke up in a quiet voice, "J-just tell me. I'm really worried…"

Kona gave Ziggy a serious look and said, "Sparks has PTSD, Ziggy."

Ziggy tilted his head in confusion. "What? What's that?" he asked. The abbreviation didn't sound familiar to him at all.

"It stands for 'Posttraumatic Stress Disorder'," Kona explained. When Ziggy didn't look any less confused, he continued by saying, "It's a, uh…a mental illness that affects him because of a traumatic event."

"…Traumatic event…?" Ziggy murmured.

Kona nodded. "Way back when Sparks was younger, back when he was still a Pikachu I think, something _really_ bad happened to him."

Ziggy gasped and his eyes went wide. "What happened?"

"I, uh…" Kona immediately looked uncomfortable. "I don't think he wants me sharing that information. You'd have to ask him yourself, but I don't think he wants to talk about it, so I wouldn't recommend it…"

"Oh…" Ziggy murmured softly. That was rather disconcerting to hear. His mind immediately went wild with speculation.

"Anyway," Kona said, "That traumatic event hit him hard and deep. He never truly recovered from it, and it can cause symptoms like what you saw today. That's what the disorder is."

Ziggy looked up at Kona and frowned. "I…don't understand."

Kona looked thoughtful for a moment and then said, "Think about what just happened. Those two goons came after you and were going to attack you. That was pretty scary, right? It was probably _really_ scary." Ziggy nodded and he said, "So you probably felt all stressed out, afraid, sick to your stomach, probably felt like panicking… but then, after Sparks saved you and knocked them out, you felt better right? I mean before he had his episode. You felt relived. The scary moment was over, it was in the past, and you felt like you didn't have to worry about it anymore, right?"

"Uh…" Ziggy thought back to the moment before Sparks had started acting odd. In that moment, he had definitely felt relieved and even quite delighted that Sparks had saved him. "Yeah."

"Well, for Sparks and this traumatic event, that doesn't happen," Kona explained, "He can't move on from it. He can't get it out of his head. That relief never comes. What happened to Sparks today was that he was having a flashback. His mind was taking him back in time to when the event first happened and he was pretty much reliving it all over again. In a way, it's sort of 'stuck' in his head."

Ziggy was giving Kona a wide-eyed look. "Oh my gosh…" he murmured, bringing a paw up to his mouth. He still didn't completely understand, but what Kona had explained sounded just _awful_.

Kona glanced away and scratched the back of his head. "That's not really the best explanation, but it's the best I can do," he admitted.

"I…" Ziggy murmured, but his voice died on his tongue. He didn't know what to say. He didn't know how to react to this new information. "I just… Sparks has always been really strong…and brave… I didn't think something like this could happen…"

"He _is_ strong and brave, Ziggy," Kona said, "This happened to him a long, long time ago and he's come a long way in learning to deal with this thing in his head. He's a lot better at handling it now than when I first met him. These days it hardly ever gets to him, honestly. It's just…some things can trigger a reaction in him."

Ziggy looked up at Kona questioningly. "Like what?"

"Fighting," Kona said simply, "Violence."

"F-fighting?"

Kona nodded. "That's his trigger."

Ziggy furrowed his brow. "But… I don't get it. He got into a fight with that Clefable and nothing happened to him. He was totally fine! A-and, when he first…y'know, when he first…_caught_ me…it looked like he thought we were going to fight, even though we didn't. Nothing happened then either. He was so nice and calm…"

"That's because," Kona replied, "this time, he couldn't use his defense mechanism."

"Huh?"

"His Thunder Wave. Sparks has spent years training his Thunder Wave attack, making it stronger and more effective than most other Pokémon. You know, Thunder Wave is just supposed to make a Pokémon's body feel stiff and hard to move. It hinders them in battle but they can still fight back. Sparks can practically knock out a Pokémon completely with his Thunder Wave's paralysis."

Ziggy thought back to the fight with the Clefable again. One zap from his cheeks and she had been immobilized on the ground. She couldn't even talk afterwards.

"Sparks uses Thunder Wave to end conflict before things get violent. Before anybody has to get hurt," Kona explained, "But…I don't know if you know this or not, but Electric-Type moves don't work on Ground-Type Pokémon. Graveler and Marowak are both Ground-Types."

Of course. That was the difference. That was the confusing piece of the puzzle he had been missing. He couldn't use his big fancy electric attack because it wouldn't work, and so he had to actually get violent.

"It was just a really unfortunate series of events…" Kona commented.

Ziggy gulped. This was a lot to process and he wasn't sure his stressed out mind could handle it all. "So…" he spoke up in a somewhat shaky voice, "Something…_really_ really bad happened to Sparks…and if he gets into a fight…he thinks it's going to happen again and he freaks out?"

"Uhh…. Kinda…" Kona replied, "That's the basic gist of it, I guess."

A moment of silence passed. Ziggy glanced down at his hindpaws with a frown. "It was really scary…" he whispered.

"Yeah… I'm sorry we lost you," Kona said, "Luckily we found you before those two could hurt you, though."

"No," Ziggy interrupted, "I meant what happened to Sparks. _That_ was really scary…"

Kona was quiet for a moment. "I guess…You've really come to rely on him, haven't you?"

Ziggy simply nodded.

"You can still rely on him, Zig. He still really likes you and cares about you, and even if there is a fight, his Thunder Wave still works like 90% of the time. He's still going to look after you, Ziggy. He made a promise and he's going to keep it."

Reassurance, unfortunately, did not come easily to the shaken Buizel. Frighteningly vibrant images of seeing Sparks convulsing on the ground were fresh in his mind. Sparks had been screaming. He had been _crying_. It was like the Raichu had become an entirely different Pokémon.

"Hey," Kona said, giving him a gentle nudge, "Don't worry, okay? Sparks has a lot of friends here and we all look after him. The big guy doesn't usually go anywhere by himself, so there's almost always one of us nearby to help him if the worst happens."

"Really…?" Ziggy murmured, "He was alone when we first met…"

"Yeah, we can't cubsit him 24/7, but he's smart. If he's going to the marketplace or something, there's Pokémon around who can get word to a doctor or hospital. Ziggy, you gotta remember, he's been dealing with this since he was a Pikachu, and he evolved years and years ago."

There was another period of silence. Ziggy twiddled his paws together as thoughts swam in his head. Some things were answered, but there was a whole avalanche of new questions. Since Kona didn't want to say what the 'traumatic event' was, some of those questions were simply going to remain unanswered.

"Um…" Ziggy finally spoke up after a while, "Is that why he's…not on the active team anymore?" He looked up at Kona and said, "He told me 'things changed' for him and now he just does whatever Carmen tells him to do. Is this why…?"

Kona paused for a moment and then said, "Yeah. It is."

"Because he might…That might…"

"Yeah."

Ziggy frowned and looked down at his paws again. He had been frightened before, but now he was just starting to feel gloomy.

"It's been a bit of time," Kona commented. Ziggy looked up and saw Kona was looking at the clock on the wall. "Want to go see if he's out of Kandice's office yet?"

The Dewott stood up, but Ziggy remained sitting on the bed with an unsure look. "Wh…What do I say to him?"

"Just treat him normally," Kona answered, "Believe it or not, that really helps. It makes things 'normal' for him."

Ziggy gulped and fidgeted some more. "I…I dunno…I'm nervous…"

"There's nothing to be nervous about. It's not like having a flashback makes him dangerous or anything. C'mon, Zig. I'm sure he wants to see you just as much as you want to see him."

It took a bit of reassurance, but eventually Ziggy was coerced into leaving the room. The atmosphere inside of the guild felt strange now. It was an unnerving mixture of a place where he felt safe and worried at the same time. The common room was still empty as they crossed through it. It weirdly felt as if the place were abandoned.

When Kona and Ziggy exited through the door leading to the main hall, Sparks and Kandice were just stepping out of her office. Ziggy gasped.

"…is no need to increase the dosage," Kandice was saying, "It will still be fine. Just make sure to stay on top of that."

"Okay…" Sparks replied. His voice was raspy and low, as if he had just woken up.

"Sparks!" Kona said, announcing their presence, "How's it going? Feeling any better?"

The Raichu first looked at Kona silently, and then turned his gaze down towards Ziggy. He _did_ look tired and completely worn out. His ears were drooping and his tail dragged on the ground behind him. He wore a heavy frown, unlike anything Ziggy had ever seen in Sparks' expression before. He seemed…upset.

"You okay, Ziggy?" Sparks asked.

Ziggy simply nodded anxiously.

Sparks closed his eyes and sighed. "Good."

Silence filled the room for quite a while, making everybody within it feel awkward and uncomfortable. Ziggy felt like he needed to say something, or even simply _do_ something, but he didn't know what.

"You, uh…" Kona eventually said, breaking the silence, "You wanna come play a board game with us, Sparks? Ziggy, you can come too. I've got a couple in my-"

"No…No thanks, Kona," Sparks interjected, drawing concerned looks from everyone else. He sighed again and held a paw to his head as if he had a headache. "I just…I need to be alone for the rest of today… I'm sorry…"

"Sparks…" Kandice spoke in a concerned tone.

"I'm just going to go to my room," Sparks said, ignoring her. He then looked at Ziggy and said, "I'm glad you're safe, buddy. And…Well…I'm sorry. I'm really sorry." He started to slowly walk across the hall towards the door they had just come from. As he passed by, he said, "Ziggy, you can find some chores to do or something, right?"

Ziggy gulped. "I…I-I guess so…" he murmured.

Sparks nodded. "Okay. G'night…" That was all he said before he pushed open the door, shuffled through, and left the other three alone in the hallway.

"Oh dear…" Kandice commented.

"That's…not a good thing, right?" Kona asked. Kandice shook her head, which sent a jolt of fear through Ziggy's heart.

"Well, I mean, it's not _bad_ per se," she clarified, "but it's a lot healthier if he recovers with his loved ones. He doesn't usually want to be alone afterwards, so this is a bit strange…"

"Should we…stop him?" Kona asked.

Kandice sighed and said, "No… I'll go check up on him later to make sure he's all right. He's a smart Pokémon. He knows what he needs, and maybe this is just something he needs right now…"

Ziggy tried to speak up, but a nervous squeak came out instead. The other two looked at him and he flushed in embarrassment. "Uh, er…I-is he gonna be okay…?" he asked.

"He'll be okay, Ziggy," Kandice said, "This isn't the first time life has knocked him down. He'll just get back up again. He always does…"

"Aw, I know you're worried about him," Kona said comfortingly upon seeing Ziggy's distressed look, "We're all worried about him. We're gonna take care of him. You should just go do something else to occupy your mind right now. Sitting around and stressing out about it isn't going to help."

Ziggy frowned and considered the suggestion for a moment. He was still shaken by the event that had taken place before Sparks' episode, and honestly wanted nothing more than to go hide in his room. It was only his concern for Sparks that was keeping him out here.

"Uh… I guess I could go help Danika…" he murmured. He realized that helping Danika with her work was pretty close to hiding away in his room, considering her small, confined workspace.

"That's not a bad plan," Kona commented, "She's the only one who's gonna be working at this hour anyway."

"Okay…" Ziggy said, still feeling gloomy.

"All right, well I gotta go talk to Carmen about this," Kona said, "You know where her office is, right?"

Ziggy nodded, and then Kona bid a quick goodbye and dashed off. Ziggy was left standing in the main hallway with Kandice.

"Come talk to me if you need to, sweetheart," Kandice said to him, "I won't be far."

"Y-you said you'd check on him…?" Ziggy asked anxiously.

"Of course, dear. I'll check a couple times."

"Um…" Ziggy shuffled on the spot for a moment, wringing his paws for a bit before asking, "Can…you please tell me if something bad happens? R-right away?"

Kandice looked at him for a moment, and then smiled compassionately. "You'll be the first to know. I'll ping Danika's badge." After a pause, she added, "It's sweet to see how much you care about him."

"He's…I-I've never had a…a friend…like him before…"

Kandice re-entered her office after that, leaving Ziggy truly alone in the hallway. He sighed gloomily and hugged himself tightly in the hoodie he was still wearing. It was just never easy. Things never, ever went right…

* * *

A couple hours later, Ziggy was in Danika's office, still sorting files. The sun had long since set, but they only knew that because Danika had a clock on her computer-thing. Such was the downside of having no windows in one's office.

The Sneasel had been surprised and pleased to see Ziggy come to help her with her work. Especially since it was late and he wasn't really expected to do chores after dinnertime. Unfortunately, being cooped up in her 'dungeon' all day meant that Danika had missed the entire episode with Sparks, so Ziggy had to fill her in on what had happened. It had not been a pleasant experience reliving it even once.

Regardless, Danika got work going for the two of them rather quickly. She had said that she trusted the other alumni to help Sparks out, having done it many times before. There was nothing to worry about unless somebody _gave_ her a reason to worry.

Danika had just opened a new box full of old folders to sort, so there was no shortage of work to be done. These were more old citizenship records, but these were from other cities in the region as opposed to Radiant City itself.

"Let's do it like this," Danika said, "Go through and hand me anyone starting with 'A', 'B' or 'C', and then you can sort the rest while I type those up."

In truth, doing this work for Danika _was_ taking his mind off of things. There were a lot of folders in the box and he wanted to make sure he didn't mess up and skip over an 'A', 'B' or 'C' name. He was mildly interested to see the old headshot photos of all the different species of Pokémon. Some of them were species he hadn't actually seen in real life before.

"Are ya getting along with everybody else?" Danika asked at one point.

Ziggy looked up from his work. He had started sorting the rest of the alphabet at this point. "Huh? You mean the Pokémon working here? Yeah, sure. They're all really nice."

"Good! That means we're doing our job right!"

"Heh… Um, do you always work up here?"

Danika actually laughed at that. "One fateful day, Carmen brought me a piece of paper to look at. An application to be a beta tester for this huge thing." She gestured up at the computer screen. "I foolishly got too excited and told her to order the bigger, better, more powerful model. Thus, my destiny was sealed."

"Oh… So you don't like it up here?"

"No, no! Of course I like it!" Danika replied quickly, "Working with the computer anyway. I like that. I like it a lot actually! It's just changed the types of responsibilities I have now." She glanced over her shoulder at him and smiled. "I make a promise to myself to get out and do something exciting for the guild at least once a month, though."

"Really? Like what…?"

"One time I got to help out with MD research!" she replied excitedly, "That was a lot of fun!"

Ziggy stopped what he was doing and looked up at her in confusion. "What's that…?"

"What? MD research?"

"What's…'MD'?"

"Huh?!" Danika blurted out, eyes wide, but then shook her head and said, "Right, right. Sorry. Keep forgetting you're not savvy to this stuff." She then cleared her throat, turned in her seat to face him, and explained, "MD stands for 'Mystery Dungeon'."

"Mystery Dungeon…" Ziggy repeated, but the phrase was unfamiliar to him entirely.

"A Mystery Dungeon is an unusual phenomenon that affects a large, isolated area. It messes with the very fabric of its physical makeup, making it so that every time a Pokémon goes into one, it looks like a completely different place. Most of them are so twisted and convoluted, they're basically mazes."

Ziggy stared at Danika in shock. "It…changes stuff? Just on its own?"

"Most of them are underground," she explained further, "So, like, it'll be a series of connected caves and caverns, but the way the caves go will twist around and change, so one tunnel leads somewhere one day and then leads somewhere else the next day."

"Wh-what…? Oh my gosh… But how?"

"Well…Nobody really knows for sure exactly. There's been studies, but there's still a lot unknown about them. Most Pokémon just accept them as a natural part of this world."

The folder Ziggy had been holding slipped from his paws onto the ground. "That's…r-really scary…"

"Oh, no! No, don't worry!" Danika quickly backpedaled, "No, they're not dangerous. Mystery Dungeons were discovered hundreds of years ago, and exploration and dungeoneering teams over the decades have discovered and explored them. They're all clearly marked on maps now and are usually cordoned off from the public. Pokémon used to get lost in them all the time because they stumbled into them without knowing, and a bunch of real nasty Pokémon used to live in them, but not anymore. They're better understood now and closely monitored so nobody goes in unless they have to."

"Oh…" Ziggy relaxed a little. He had been imagining wandering through a forest and suddenly having the trees all twist around him to form a maze he could never escape from. Hearing that they weren't something that randomly occurred quelled his fears.

"It's been years or maybe even decades since a new MD has been discovered, anyway," Danika commented, "Most Pokémon are pretty confident that we've found them all at this point."

"Um… Have you ever been in one?"

"No, actually!" Danika said with a chuckle, "That used to be what guilds like this were all about. 95% of a guild's work had to do with Mystery Dungeons, but these days not so much. But no, I've never been in one. I know Carmen's definitely been in one. I think you _have_ to explore at least once in order to be guildmaster. And Sparks has _definitely_ been in a couple of them."

The mention of Sparks immediately soured Ziggy's mood, reminding him of the fact that the Raichu was still sulking and suffering down in his room most likely.

Danika saw this and tried to steer the conversation elsewhere. "I think I have research pictures on this thing," she said as she turned to face the computer screen again. After a bit of typing, she brought up a display of a couple images. She showed him a few photographs taken from the entrance of the same cave. One showed the cave turn a corner to the left, while the next showed it splitting into two paths, and then the third just had a straight path leading into the darkness.

"You'll often see big signs like this on fences that surround Mystery Dungeons these days," Danika said, showing an image of a sign that read 'WARNING: Mystery Dungeon zone. Entry strictly prohibited without authorization. Entering without authorization is dangerous and possibly fatal, and trespassers do so at their own risk!'

"That's… kinda freaky," Ziggy admitted.

"Yeah, but so's nature. It's a freaky world out there." She then cleared her throat and said, "All right, let's keep goin'. How you doin' on that pile?"

Ziggy looked down to his sorting work. "Almost done," he said, "I didn't know Radiant City had all of this…"

"Yeah, it's the capital city."

"They must know everything about everyone…"

Danika laughed at that. "No they do not. Because it's all unsorted like that. Once I'm done digitizing everything, _then_ they'll know everything!"

Ziggy picked up a file and glanced at the name, seeing that it started with an 'E'. He also noticed the date of birth, which was almost 90 years ago. "How far back does this go?" he asked.

"Not as long as you'd think. Only about 200 or maybe 300 years…"

He picked up another one and saw that the date of birth was only 25 years back. "Gosh, these really aren't sorted at all…"

"Yeah, I'm gonna be up real late workin' on this. I don't _have_ to, but I wanna get a good start on all this. It's still gonna take me days and days…"

"Yeah…" Ziggy murmured, looking at the seemingly endless piles of old folders.

"But you're really helping, Zig! Thanks again."

"Oh, you're welcome."

"You feel free to head out whenever you want. Just keep workin' here until you get bored. I can handle the rest."

* * *

Ziggy had stuck around for longer than he had expected. In truth he had started to get bored eventually, but had been too compassionate to say he wanted to stop. However, long after the sun had gone down according to the clock on Danika's computer, Ziggy started to worry about Sparks again and this was enough to drag him out of her office.

He hadn't heard anything about the Raichu. He knew that Kandice or Kona or somebody would contact him via Danika's badge if anything went wrong. Still, though, he hated not knowing for sure. Even hours later, he was still trying to process this new information about Sparks and his trauma.

The intrepid Buizel quickly slunk through the halls. There were more Pokémon walking about at this hour. His nerves were shot because of this, but he just kept his head down and traveled as quickly as he could. He made it to the grand staircase and descended to the ground floor, whereupon he turned towards the door to the common room.

Ziggy opened the door, intending on passing through and heading directly to Sparks' room. In the common room, sitting at the table, were Akash, Liz and Jules. The latter two were having a lively conversation, while Akash sat quietly off to the side.

"Howdy, Ziggy!" Liz called over to him with a wave.

"Oh. Uh, hi…" Ziggy said as he came to a stop.

"We heard some stuff happened," she said, "You doin' okay?"

"Um…Y-yeah, _I'm_ fine," he replied.

"Good, good. We're all glad to hear that," Liz said, and the others roused in agreement.

"Ah…Thanks, guys…"

"Wanna come join us?" she offered, "We're just hangin' out, talkin' 'bout stuff."

"Park yer butt and relax, Buizel boy," Jules quipped.

"Uhh…" Ziggy hesitated and glanced in the direction of the dorms. "I, uh…I was going to see…Sparks… Um, I…wanted to see if he's okay…"

The three also looked to the dorms, and then Liz spoke up. "Don't you worry 'bout him, sugar. Kandy went in there not too long ago and said he's fine. He's prob'ly tryin' to take a nap."

"Oh," Ziggy said, "Oh gosh, I don't wanna wake him up…"

"Yeah, no need to bother him now. He's not goin' nowhere," Jules said dismissively, "C'mon, I'll poke Liz and make her make food if it'll make you stay and relax."

"S'cuse you, I ain't a machine," Liz retorted playfully, "I been cookin' all day, sug."

"So you're gonna let Ziggy starve then? How heartless…" Jules remarked dramatically.

"He _ate_ at dinner!" she quietly exclaimed, and then turned to Ziggy. "C'mon now, back me up. Weren't that the best berry salad y'all had? Ya had two servin's and _then_ Cheri Berry pie!"

Ziggy blushed a little, feeling just a little silly hearing others talk about how much he had indulged himself at dinner. "Yeah, um…Cheri pie was _really_ good…"

"See? I toldja!" Liz said, giving Jules a light punch on the shoulder.

"Is there any more…?" Ziggy asked hopefully as he slowly made his way over to the table.

Liz laughed at that. "Sorry but no, sugar-pie. You weren't the only one who liked it. I think rose-boy over here had two slices."

"I did not," Jules said, "You're imagining things ya crazy bovine!"

Ziggy eventually ended up sitting at the table. He was seated next to Liz and Jules, while Akash was across on the other side. Ziggy looked over at Akash and gave him a little wave, and the Deerling grinned softly and waved back. He noticed that Akash's coat wasn't as vibrant as before. It was a much duller orange colour, closer to brown.

He was about to bring it up when Liz captured his attention quite forcefully, by literally taking hold of his shoulders and turning him to face her. "Ziggy, hon!" she said, "I keep forgettin'! I've been thinkin' of tryin' somethin' new for dessert and I've been askin' everyone for ideas. Ya got any thoughts?"

"Buh, wh…" Ziggy murmured, slightly caught off guard by her forwardness, "D…Dessert? Oh gosh, I dunno…" He chuckled awkwardly. The truth was that he usually didn't indulge in her desserts very much, but that was because he ate so much of her food beforehand that he got full too quickly.

"I guess…" Ziggy eventually said, "I like chocolate bars?"

Liz looked thoughtful for a moment. "Chocolate bars…" she repeated thoughtfully.

"Oh great," Jules said sarcastically, "Now you've gone and turned her into the next Wiggly Wonka! She's gonna go build a factory and make chocolate bars for the rest of her life."

"…What?" Ziggy replied in confusion.

Liz looked back at him. "I'd smack ya again for yer smart mouth but…That ain't a bad idea actually." She then laughed jovially.

"I automatically get a golden ticket, right?"

"Ya don't even eat chocolate!" she shot back in exasperation.

"That's not the point of a golden ticket!"

Once again, a playfully but somewhat intense argument involving Jules was taking place while Ziggy just watched from the sidelines in fascination. Eventually, though, he lost interest in their squabbling and turned to look at Akash. The Deerling seemed distracted, looking off into space with a quiet, emotionless expression.

"Um…Akash?"

"Hm?" He blinked and turned to regard Ziggy. "Oh, uh…Yes?"

"Are you okay?" Ziggy asked with a concerned frown.

He was silent for a moment before smiling reassuringly and saying, "I'm fine, Ziggy. Thanks for asking."

"Okay…"

"I know the two of us haven't had a chance to talk all that much. I've been pretty busy these last couple weeks. I'm glad everyone was able to figure out a way for you to stay here."

"Heh…Me too…"

"I like having you around. I think everybody else agrees too."

Ziggy briefly glanced over at the other two and then said, "Really? Why…?"

"You're very friendly, Ziggy. You have a nice personality. I think we've all found it remarkably easy to become friends with you, honestly."

"Uh…" Ziggy bit his lip. Familiar dark thoughts passed through his head as he glanced down at his own paw for a moment.

When he looked back at Akash, the Deerling was yawning. "Oh, ah, pardon me," he said afterwards, "I've been a little tired lately."

"You guys…work really hard," Ziggy commented.

"Ah, but it's always worth it. We get paid in smiling faces."

Ziggy couldn't help but notice that Akash said that statement with a distinctly ironic _lack_ of a smile.

"Hey, Akash!" The conversation was suddenly interrupted by Jules calling across the table. "You know where Rico is?"

"Rico? I think he's still out with Terry."

"Still? I thought he'd be back by now. Where'd they go?"

"I dunno," Akash replied, "They both just said they were going somewhere. Maybe they went to see a show and won't be back until late. Why do you ask?"

"'Cus he's out past his bedtime!" Jules said with a laugh before answering more seriously, "He owes me 10 Poké."

"Oh."

"I'm seein' my girlfriend tomorrow and I wanna treat her to somethin' nice."

Akash and Liz both gave Jules a flat look.

"I'm not gonna spend _just_ the 10 Poké on her," he said with a roll of his eyes, "Sheesh…"

"You…have a girlfriend?" Ziggy asked. He covered his mouth a moment later in embarrassment. He had just spoken without thinking. Why had he asked such a rude-sounding question like that?

"Heh," Jules chuckled smugly, "'Course I do. I mean, look at me."

"S-s-sorry…" Ziggy murmured, immediately shrinking back with a bashful look. He had just been curious. Living on the streets all of his life, he was only vaguely aware of the concept of boyfriends, girlfriends and mates. He'd never really encountered any Pokémon with a partner besides long-mated couples.

"No big deal," he said in response to Ziggy's apology, "But yeah, she's a sweetheart. Obviously drawn in by my pure masculine physique. Heh heh…"

"Yer a fruit cupcake and ya know it," Liz said drolly.

"A very masculine fruit cupcake!" Jules said with a chuckle. He then stood up and stretched his limbs. "Well anyway, you all bore me so now I'm gonna leave." He stuck his tongue out to punctuate his remark, forcing Ziggy to remember that once again, most of what Jules says is a joke.

"Aw, get outta here ya Pecha Berry," Liz said with a wave of her hoof and a laugh.

"Get some shuteye for our mission tomorrow, Akash!" the Sylveon said.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. Sure," Akash replied.

Ziggy then watched for a moment as Jules started to saunter out of the room. He glanced over his shoulder and gave Ziggy a cocky wink and smirk before he lifted his paw to open the door. "Catch ya later, squirt."

* * *

About an hour passed by, and Ziggy remained in the company of Liz and Akash. He spent most of the time talking to Liz, or rather listening to Liz as she told him a thousand tall tales from both inside and outside of the kitchen. Carmen had briefly stopped by to talk with the two guildmembers about something, but she left just as quickly.

Finally, Kandice reappeared in the common room and made a direct line to the dorms without much more than a friendly wave to Ziggy and the others. Ziggy knew she was going to see Sparks again, and all of his apprehension and worries about his friend returned. Was Sparks doing better? Worse? Ziggy became distinctly less talkative for the next ten minutes or so as his mind filled with thoughts of the Raichu.

"Ziggy?"

Hearing his name so suddenly caused the Buizel to jump slightly. He turned back, unsure of exactly how much time had passed, to see Kandice standing in the doorway.

"He says he can talk to you now if you want," she said.

Ziggy gasped. "He…He can?"

Kandice nodded. "It's up to you."

He didn't need to be asked twice. Ziggy immediately stood up and hurriedly made his way over to the door where Kandice was. She led him inside, and escorted him to Sparks' room's door. She held up her badge to unlock the door, and then took a step back.

"He's pretty tired," Kandice informed him, "but other than that he's okay. I highly doubt you'll need to, but come get me if I'm needed." She then bowed her head to him and immediately turned and walked away, leaving Ziggy alone in the hallway.

Ziggy looked up at the door to Sparks' room, but hesitated. What was there to be expected on the other side of the door? Again, Ziggy's mind was subjected to vivid images of Sparks screaming and thrashing about on the ground. Ziggy worried that he would have to watch his tongue to avoid accidentally setting Sparks off. There was still so much he didn't understand about this thing that Sparks had.

He gulped. Ziggy had been in Sparks' room plenty of times before, but this time felt different. There was a distant, terrible part of his brain trying to convince him that he should be scared of Sparks now.

It was his memories of how Sparks had looked coming out of Kandice's office that convinced him to simply open the door. It was over and done with in a second, before he even realized what he had done.

Sparks was there, sitting on his bed. He was looking off to the side, his shoulders slumping. The only indication that he had noticed Ziggy's entrance was a single ear twitch. He didn't move or say anything.

Ziggy stood frozen in the doorway for a moment. It had been hours since he had last seen Sparks, and now he was finally in the Raichu's company again. That previously meant that everything would be fine, but now Ziggy knew it wasn't really the case. Ziggy knew that Sparks was weakened and suffering. He wasn't the same invincible, brave Raichu as before.

"S…Sparks…?"

It took a moment, but eventually Sparks turned to look at Ziggy, and the Buizel gasped. Sparks had been crying. His eyes were red and puffy, and the fur on his cheeks was damp. His muzzle was twisted into a heart-wrenching frown. "Ziggy…"

For a moment, Ziggy just stood there again. Sparks looked absolutely miserable, but not because he had been unwell or anything. He just looked so sad, and Ziggy's heart immediately went out to him. He wanted to ask Sparks if he could come in, but instead he simply came in anyway. He marched right over to Sparks' bed and sat down next to him.

Ziggy hugged his side and said, "Are you okay?"

Sparks didn't say anything at first, but Ziggy felt him slump forward even more. "I'm sorry, Ziggy…"

"Sparks…" Ziggy frowned and hugged his friend tighter. Whatever he had been worrying about when standing outside of the door was gone. Now that he had seen Sparks, he understood things a lot better. Sparks was upset, and right now that was the only thing that mattered.

"I'm sorry…" he said again in a glowering tone.

"…What're you sorry for?" Ziggy asked quietly.

The Raichu shivered a little and said, "For…failing you, Ziggy."

Ziggy stopped hugging him and looked up at him with a confused look. "What d'you mean?"

Sparks shook his head, not even looking at him. "I'm a mess, Ziggy. My head is a big mess inside. I'm sorry I didn't tell you about this before, but… I thought I'd been getting better…" He sighed before continuing. "I can't do what I promised I'd do, Ziggy. That's what I'm sorry for."

"What promise?"

"I promised to protect you, Ziggy. I promised I'd keep you safe when you're with me."

Ziggy gave him a flummoxed look and said, "But you _did_ protect me! You beat those guys up before they could hurt me!"

"But I-!" Sparks started to shout in response, but then fell silent. He remained quiet for a moment and simply stared ahead. Eventually he sighed and said, "Sometimes I just don't know anymore…"

As more silence permeated the room, Ziggy felt the need to say something. He felt like he needed to say _some_thing or other, if for no other reason than to cheer Sparks up. "Um…" he faltered, "Sparks…?"

"Mm?" Sparks grunted.

Ziggy thought for a moment about what to say. What was the most important thing that needed to be said? What was it that Sparks needed to hear? Ziggy had never found himself in a position like this before in his entire living memory. It felt so strange peeking behind the other side of the curtain.

"…I was worried about you, Sparks."

At first the Raichu didn't reply, but then he slowly turned his head and looked at Ziggy with his tear-stained eyes. "You were?"

Ziggy nodded. "I…I was scared… I didn't know what was happening to you. Everyone kept telling me that you were all right, but I couldn't see you. I couldn't ask you myself. All day I've been…I-I just didn't know what to think. I didn't know…i-if you were gonna be okay…"

Sparks slumped a bit and said, "I guess I gave you a scare, huh?"

"Uh huh…" Ziggy said with a nod, "B-but, y'know, like a 'worried scared'…" He paused for a moment and bit his lip, and then said, "I'm still pretty 'worried scared'…"

"I'm sorry, bud…" Sparks said softly, "I didn't mean to scare you. I…didn't mean for any of this to happen. I should've just…Ugh…I should've done a lot of things…"

Ziggy frowned. He reached over and placed one of his paws on Sparks' larger paw.

With another sigh, Sparks looked down at him and asked, "What have they told you so far?"

"Huh? You mean about your… uh…" Ziggy furrowed his brow and tried to recall the four letters Kona had used to describe Sparks' thing. "Uh…PTSD…?"

"Yeah. PTSD."

"They just told me that something really bad happened to you a long time ago…and it's like 'stuck' in your brain, so it comes back and scares you again when certain stuff happens."

Sparks nodded sagely. "That pretty much sums it up…"

"They told me that…fighting…is what sets it off."

Ziggy jumped slightly as a brief but noticeable shiver ran through Sparks' whole body. Ziggy had felt it through the Raichu's paw.

"I…I can't fight," Sparks answered, "Not even a little bit. I can't fight anyone else, or I… It all…just comes back… I have to use Thunder Wave."

"Y-yeah…and you couldn't use it today."

Sparks closed his eyes and shook his head. "That's why I'm not on the active team anymore, Zig. To be on the active team, you need combat training and you need to be able to defend yourself properly… The stuff we do is mostly benign, but you never know when a mission or a job will lead you into confrontation with some whack job."

"Oh, yeah… That makes sense…"

Silence filled the room once again. Ziggy was frowning as he considered this. He had been confused and even a bit afraid of Sparks' condition after being told about it by Kona. However, looking at Sparks now, Ziggy could easily see how much anguish it was putting the Raichu through. At this point, Ziggy had nothing but sympathy to give.

"Um…S-Sparks?" Ziggy spoke up nervously. There was one big question still burning in his mind, but he was very hesitant to bring it up.

"Yes?"

"Would you…Would you be okay with…i-if I asked…" he stammered, "Um…What happened…? Back…b-back then?"

Sparks stiffened, and Ziggy immediately regretted asking. It looked at first like Sparks was going to get angry or upset, but he remained calm. After a very heavy sigh, he simply said, "Maybe another time…"

"Oh…O-okay…Sorry…"

"Just know that it was…i-it was horrible…"

Ziggy frowned even more. "Sparks…"

"Honestly, you'd probably be better off if I never told you…"

"I-it's okay, Sparks," Ziggy said quickly, "I-I shouldn't have asked…"

Sparks then leaned forward and buried his head into his forepaws with a groan. "Ziggy…" he said in a muffled voice, "I thought I was getting better. I've been taking pills for this. I've been talking with Kandice, and it hasn't happened in a long while. There were even times where I thought it was gonna happen and it didn't. I thought it might happen when I chased you out into the field, but it didn't…"

Ziggy fidgeted nervously as he looked at his despairing friend. He didn't know what to do. He wanted to cheer Sparks up somehow, but didn't know how.

"I'd better go find somebody else here who can look after you," Sparks said glumly, "Someone who can actually-"

"No!" Ziggy shouted.

Sparks was caught off guard by the outburst and looked over at Ziggy. "Buddy, I-"

"No, I don't care!" Ziggy continued, "I don't want somebody else, Sparks! I want you!"

"…I appreciate it, buddy, but I really don't think I should be…"

"S-Sparks, no…" Ziggy said in a softer, sadder voice, "No, please… Please don't leave me…"

"…Ziggy…"

"I…I need you, Sparks. You're the _best_ thing that's ever happened to me…I…I can't…" Ziggy sniffled. He was starting to cry now too. "Sparks…You're my friend…"

Sparks didn't say anything. He simply looked down at Ziggy with an unreadable expression. Ziggy continued to sniffle and try to hold back tears. It was truly dawning on him how serious Sparks was about failing him. More than that, though, Ziggy was starting to realize _just_ how important Sparks had become in his life, even in such a relatively short time.

"Sparks…" Ziggy whimpered, "Y-you're not broken. You're not a mess. _I_ am. I'm the biggest mess. I'm a big messy freak and I'm just so useless. Y-you've been there…for more than a month now. You're always so big and strong and brave and kind…Always, Sparks! You've always been like that. You've been amazing, Sparks! And I think you're still amazing!" He started to raise his voice. "So what if you've got this thing? So what if you can't fight sometimes? I know you can fight _some_times! You fought off the Clefable. You…y-you could've run away from those guys today, but you still fought them. You still protected me. You…you're still so brave…"

Ziggy leaned over and gave Sparks another hug, shivering and sobbing softly. Sparks didn't react. For a while he didn't even move. Ziggy wasn't sure how much time had passed, but eventually Sparks did move. What he did caught the Buizel by surprise.

Sparks hugged him back.

"Thank you, Ziggy," he whispered, "It…means a lot to me to hear you say that…"

"Please don't leave me, Sparks," Ziggy sobbed.

Sparks took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, but then said, "I won't."

"Y…Y-you won't?"

"I'm sorry, Ziggy. For real this time, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to freak you out like this. I was just beating myself up. I was doing the one thing I hope you never do…Giving up…" He sighed heavily and ended the hug. Ziggy reluctantly let go as well. "It's…not easy for me, Ziggy. It's been so many years and even though sometimes it feels like it's getting easier, really it's not. I feel hopeless sometimes…"

Ziggy frowned. "I know what that's like…"

"I know you do," Sparks said compassionately, "And I know a lot of times you feel scared…Ziggy, the truth is that I'm scared too. I'm scared that I'm going to fail you. I'm scared I'm gonna let you down. That this damn thing in my head is going to screw something up and get you hurt…"

"Sparks…" Ziggy interjected, "I-it's okay… I think you're really amazing but…I-I know you're not perfect… I know I can't rely on you for _every_thing."

Sparks looked down at him for a moment and finally smiled. "That's a very grown-up thing of you to say, Ziggy."

"Well…" Ziggy said as he rubbed his forelimb awkwardly, "I've had to rely on myself for a lot…"

"I shouldn't have shut myself away like this," Sparks commented, looking around at his room, "I should've talked to you right away. I'm sorry, Zig. I promised I'd take care of you, and I meant it. I'll just have to try my best…"

Ziggy perked up. "So you're not going away?"

"No," Sparks answered, "No, I never should've said that at all… I can't give up on you, Zig. You've already made steps forward. We can't stop now."

"…Thank you," Ziggy said softly.

"It's not going to be easy for either of us…" Sparks commented as he rubbed his temple, "This hit me a lot harder than I thought it would. I think I'm gonna try to stick inside of the guild for a couple of days."

"That's _totally_ fine with me," Ziggy said, "I dunno if I ever wanna go outside again ever…"

"Ah, well, let's not go _that_ far…But yeah, we can take a little break and just hang out here where it's a bit safer."

"Okay…"

Sparks looked over at Ziggy with a serious expression. "Are you…okay with this, though?" he asked, "Now that you know I have this…_problem_?"

"Mhm," Ziggy said with a nod, "Being with you even with that problem is a lot better than being without you…"

"Aw, c'mon Ziggy. You're gonna make me blush."

"Are _you_ okay now, though?" Ziggy asked.

Sparks sighed softly but then said, "I think I'll be okay… A good night's rest might do me some good…"

"Okay…"

A moment passed as Sparks simply looked down at the Buizel. Then, he leaned over and gave Ziggy a shoulder hug. "Thanks for caring, Ziggy. It means way more than you could imagine.'

"Heh… Same to you."

"All right," Sparks said as he gave Ziggy a pat on the back, "I'm gonna relax and read a book. You'll be all right until the morning?" When Ziggy nodded, he said, "Sounds good. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day."

"Mhm…" Ziggy stood up, but paused before heading towards the door. "Uh…Sparks?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for taking me out today…" he murmured, "_Some_ parts of it were nice."

Sparks looked at him in surprise for a moment, but then chuckles softly. "You're welcome, Zig. You just let us know when you're ready to try again."

Ziggy nodded. "I will…"

"G'night, bud."

"Goodnight, Sparks."

* * *

Danika yawned as she leaned back in her wheeled chair, stretching her limbs. She took a sip from her Sitrus Berry energy drink, feeling the strong flavour give her a warm rush through her body. Her computer screen was illuminated before her, casting a shining white reflection against her glasses.

She knew she should probably be in bed, but bedtime was a concept that was foreign to her. She had a _huge_ workload ahead of her, so she wanted to get as much of it done tonight as she could. She promised herself she wouldn't do this much on subsequent days, though she wasn't sure that promise would hold.

Having Ziggy help her earlier today had been nice and had helped make that dent in her workload that much bigger. Still, though, she felt like she had a lot more midnight oil left to burn. Kandice had called her earlier to let her know Sparks was feeling a bit better, so that was a load off her shoulders too.

She reached over and picked up another file. Inside was information for an Incineroar. She dutifully entered all of the information from the file onto the computer, her claws zipping across the keyboard as if she had been using it her whole life. One down, five hundred bazillion to go.

The next file was a Simisage, which Danika realized was the Incineroar's mate. Since the two shared a surname, and since Ziggy had so helpfully sorted them, they were next to one another in the pile. Pokémon rarely ever used their surnames aside from official identification like this, but it was certainly helpful in this case. A quick check of the family information confirmed this. On her file was written, 'Mate: Incineroar'.

Danika shook her head. Why in the world had these old files been formatted like this so that they only listed the species of an individual's family? It was a weird relic of the past to be sure. Regardless, she typed up the Simisage's information as well.

Like clockwork, Danika picked up the next file. She opened it up, read the information, and typed it up. As she did, though, something caught her eye. She leaned in closer and adjusted her glasses to make sure she had read it right, and then her eyes shot open wide.

She quickly grabbed the next file on the stack. Inside was exactly what she had expected to find. Danika held up the two files next to one another and triple checked them.

"Oh, dear heavens…"


	12. Lost and Found

Chapter 12 \- **Lost and Found**

"Hey, Sparks?"

The Raichu glanced up from the common room table, where he had been sitting and eating lunch. It was the middle of a relatively quiet and somewhat sunny day. Ziggy was in his room reading a couple picture books for cubs. It had been a tough day yesterday, so the two had agreed to take things easy for today.

"Hey, Danika. What's up?" Sparks greeted the Sneasel as she approached the table. She had two manila-coloured files in her claws.

"Um…Can I talk to you?" she asked as she glanced around. Javier and Tora were also in the room, talking to each other on the couch during their lunch break.

"Sure. Absolutely," Sparks replied.

Danika leaned in a little closer and said, almost in a whisper, "…In private?"

Sparks then noted the serious look on her face. "Uhh, yeah sure…" he replied. He too glanced over at the room's other occupants, and then over towards the door to the dorms. "We can go to my room."

"Alright."

Danika stood back to let Sparks stand up, and then followed behind him as he made his way to the dorms. He passed by Ziggy's room, sneaking a glance through the slightly-askew door to see that Ziggy was still reading, and then opened the door to his own room.

Once the door was fully closed, Sparks sat down on the bed while Danika sat down at the chair next to his desk. "So," she said, "I guess, first of all, how're you doing Sparks? Feeling any better?"

"Ah, yeah…" Sparks said with a sobering look, "I think so, yeah. I just…got hit really hard yesterday for some reason. Ziggy came to talk to me and it helped me get my priorities back on track. Somehow, by the grace of Arceus, I didn't have any nightmares last night. So I'm feeling better today. Thanks for asking."

Danika nodded and smiled. "Good," she said, and then her smile disappeared again as she glanced down at the files she was holding.

"So, what's up?" Sparks asked, "You find something while sorting through the old files?"

"I sure did…" Danika said.

Sparks chuckled awkwardly. "Well, c'mon. Don't keep me in suspense. Wha'd you find?"

The Sneasel held up the two files and looked at Sparks. "I, uh…"

"What?" Sparks gently pressed.

"I think I found Ziggy's parents."

Silence filled the room as Sparks looked at Danika incredulously, unsure if he'd heard her correctly.

"Not-not like _actually_ found them," she hurriedly added, "They're deceased, like Ziggy said, but…I think I found their files."

Sparks furrowed his brow. "Are you certain…?" he asked cautiously.

"Like ninety percent sure," Danika said.

"Uh… Well, all right. Let's have a look then…"

Danika nodded and handed both of the files over to Sparks. He opened one of them up, revealing an old citizenship record for a male Floatzel named "Mateni". Sparks glanced over the information about his age, date of birth, occupation and other such stuff. He saw that another Floatzel was listed as his mate.

And there, written down near the bottom, was the most noteworthy part of the file. It said 'Child: Buizel', with an asterisk next to it, and slightly further down was a footnote that said 'ACP'. Sparks hadn't even known that citizenship records tracked Alternatively Coloured Pokémon, but that's what was listed here. This was a Floatzel who had a shiny Buizel as a child.

Sparks opened up the other file, which featured a female Floatzel named "Leilani". She also had Floatzel listed as a mate, and she shared the same surname as Mateni so this was more than likely his mate. Their similar dates of birth corroborated this. As an aside, Sparks was starting to realize how inadequate these older citizenship records were, and how much of a tough job Danika was ploughing through.

Once again, the same thing was listed at the bottom. 'Child: Buizel*' and the 'ACP' footnote. By a cursory look, these two Pokémon did indeed seem to be Ziggy's parents.

"There's no place of residence listed," Sparks observed.

"Yeah," Danika replied, "It's a stupid holdover from when Pokémon were more nomadic back in the day and just lived wherever they could build a shelter. They only changed that just recently, like within the last couple years."

"I see…"

"But they're from the same region. Look in the corner, they've got the same town symbol. I dunno which town it is, I'd have to look that up, but they're from the same town. Ziggy said he was from a town just outside of Radiant City, didn't he?"

"Yeah, he did. I forget which one, but yeah that's right."

Sparks looked at the two files again. It certainly seemed to add up that these might be Ziggy's parents. He looked closer and saw something that his paw had been covering up earlier; a date next to the child section. It seemed to indicate the child's year of birth.

"You see the year, huh?" Danika asked.

"Yeah. That's… 14 years ago. That's about how old we think Ziggy is."

"Yup," Danika said with a nod.

"What about Ziggy? Is there a file for him?"

Danika shook her head. "No, there wouldn't be. These are citizenship records for adults. Ziggy would only have a birth certificate, and I don't have access to any of those."

"Why in the world are these formatted like this?" Sparks grumbled, "How hard would it have been to put the name of the child on here? Ugh. Well, anyway, this is definitely an interesting find. I'm…honestly not sure what to say about this."

"You and me both. I haven't shared this with anybody except you."

"That's probably for the best right now," Sparks murmured. Ziggy's long-lost parents? Could these really be them? It seemed more than likely at this point. How would Ziggy react if he was shown this? His parents had vanished from his life so early on that he didn't even know a single thing about them. Sparks honestly wasn't sure if he should show this to Ziggy at all.

"Sparks?" Danika spoke up, "You're missing the big whammy."

"The big what?" Sparks asked, giving her an odd look.

"Look at the day Ziggy was born," she said. Once Sparks had glanced down at the date again, she then said, "Now look at the date they both died."

Sparks' eyes shifted up to the top of the records, and then they opened wide. "Wait…What?" he muttered.

Ziggy's date of birth and his parents' date of death were marginally different. According to what Ziggy had told them, they had died right after he had been born. However, these records showed that not to be the case. Both parents had identical years of death, but it was _seven_ years after Ziggy's date of birth.

If these were Ziggy's parents, then they died when he was seven years old.

"But…but that means…" Sparks mumbled.

"Yeah, it's the most troubling part…" Danika said.

"But he said…"

"I know what he said."

Sparks furrowed his brow in confusion and looked at the dates again, to see if they had magically changed. Obviously, nothing was different. Mateni and Leilani, the parents of a shiny Buizel, both died when their son was seven years old.

"They…were alive when he was a cub," Sparks murmured.

"Mhm…"

"Then how did…?" Sparks trailed off as his one question blossomed into ten more. "He would've…if they were alive when he was _seven_, then he would've…"

"Mmmmhm…"

"Wait," Sparks said, holding up a paw and backtracking a bit, "When would Ziggy have gotten one of these things?" He waved one of the files to indicate what he was talking about.

"The same time everyone gets one. The same time you got one. Age 12."

"I thought it might've been different outside of the city."

"Nope."

Sparks fell silent and he sat for a moment, deep in thought. Afterwards, he spoke up and asked, "Is there a way we can be certain that this shiny Buizel is actually Ziggy?"

"Well," Danika replied, "It'd have to be with his birth certificate, which I don't have access to as I said. We can make a request to obtain it, but as obviously no-one here is a blood-relative of Ziggy, that's not gonna be easy. Especially since we don't even know if 'Ziggy' is his real name or not."

Sparks groaned softly at the thought of red tape.

"I'm pretty sure it _is_ Ziggy, though, Sparks. You know how rare ACPs are, and to have not just two from the same town, but of the same species, and at the same age, would be a huge coincidence."

"Right…"

The room fell silent for a moment, and then Danika stood up and walked towards him. "I know…you're probably thinking the same thing I am. Right?"

Sparks simply lifted his head and looked at the left wall of his room. Sitting just beyond that wall was the very Buizel in question. "I am…" Sparks said with trepidation in his voice.

"I definitely am, Danika…Has Ziggy been _lying_ to us?"

* * *

Two very awkward days had passed since Danika had brought this information to Sparks.

The decision had been made to sit on the information for a while so that they could both give it some better thought. Nothing had to happen immediately, so life with Ziggy in the guild could continue as normal for the time being. Or rather, that was the intent at least.

Sparks had simply focused Ziggy on his chores instead of doing anything more involved. He cited the incident at the market, saying they both needed to unwind a little bit more. Ziggy was perfectly content to do his chores and seemed relieved that nothing more challenging was coming his way for the time being.

Presently, Sparks sat at the table in the common room watching Ziggy sweeping the floor. His tired brain was filled with conflicting thoughts. Ziggy seemed innocent enough as he went about his work dutifully, but Sparks found himself in a position now where he simply didn't know for sure. What was the truth? What was the _real_ truth behind Ziggy's origins?

Ziggy caught his eye and waved. Sparks smiled and waved back. The Buizel went back to sweeping and Sparks sighed. Things had definitely been awkward. Sparks knew that Ziggy could tell something was up. Ziggy knew that something was bothering him.

Sparks simply didn't know what to think. He was still feeling a little self-defeated over his episode in the market and it was making it difficult to think clearly. Ziggy's story had always been shrouded in questions, and now there were a whole lot more of them.

"Don't forget behind the couch, Ziggy," Sparks called over. Ziggy looked up and nodded at him. Sparks truly hoped that he was wrong about Ziggy lying, but couldn't fully convince himself that he was.

The door opened suddenly and Carmen briskly stepped into the room. She caught sight of Sparks and marched right up to him. "You wanted to speak with me, yes?"

Sparks was slightly caught off guard and confused by her question. Then, he remembered that it was Danika who had wanted to talk to Carmen, but Sparks had been the one to ask her. "Ah, yes. Yes, Carmen, me and Danika."

Carmen nodded and said, "By the grace of Arceus, I have 15 minutes to spare. Come to my office."

"You got it."

Once Sparks made sure Ziggy would be okay in the room without him, Carmen led him upstairs where they retrieved Danika from her room, and then the trio made their way to the guildmaster's office. Carmen sat down at her desk across from them, and then the two explained to her what they had found. Danika brought along the files to show her, and they ended by bringing up the possibility that Ziggy had been lying.

"Lying?" she repeated.

"It's possible," Danika said.

"Lying about what, exactly?" Carmen asked. There was no skepticism in her voice. She merely wanted to gain a full understanding of the situation.

"Well," Sparks answered, "He's been claiming to have been homeless and on the streets his whole life, being forced to steal food to survive and all that, because he was orphaned as a cub. But these records seem to indicate he was in his parents' company until he was seven, so that whole backstory might be fabricated."

"To what end?" Carmen asked.

"Possibly…to take advantage of our services in order to get free food and lodging," Danika explained.

Sparks winced.

"Indeed?" Carmen pressed in an even tone.

"You said it yourself, didn't you Carmen?" Danika continued, "You said that Ziggy seemed well-spoken for someone who'd been living on the streets his whole life. If he was, in truth, brought up by his parents, that would explain that."

After a moment, Sparks nodded. It _was_ a logical explanation.

"Do you really think that, Danika?" Carmen asked.

"Honestly? I don't know…" she replied.

"And you, Sparks?"

"Uhh…" Sparks frowned for a moment and shook his head. "I…don't want to believe that Ziggy would do anything untrustworthy to us. I feel like I know him well enough to at least say that he wouldn't…but if he lied about his parents?"

"Then it _is_ a possibility…" Carmen finished for him.

"Yeah…" Sparks said glumly.

Carmen then turned back to Danika. "While this is troubling, none of this is really solid evidence of any wrongdoing. I assume you both agree that confronting Ziggy about this would not be the best idea. There must be a way to confirm if these really are Ziggy's parents. I assume that's why you two are here right now?"

Danika and Sparks shared a glance, and then Danika said, "I would like to probe the city records and find out if any other shiny Buizel were born in this time frame. If not…then those are his parents."

Carmen made a thoughtful hum and brought her paws together before her muzzle. She tapped her digits as she was silent in thought for a moment. "We don't have full access to those records, Danika. I can make a case for you to get this information, but this has to be important. The city is not going to play ball just to satisfy a passing curiosity."

"I know," Danika admitted, "If these old records weren't so woefully inadequate, I wouldn't have to do this."

"I can agree with you there…" Carmen said as she cast another glance at the files, "Who thought any of this was a good idea…?"

"I do think this will be important," Danika said, "As a precautionary measure, at least."

Sparks winced again and gave Danika a sidelong glance.

"All right," Carmen said, "I'll see what I can do."

Danika then noticed that Sparks was looking at her. "I hope we're wrong about this, Sparks," she said.

"Yeah…" he said. It was a little relieving to hear her say that, at least. "Yeah, me too…"

"Oh, by the way," Carmen said, "On a bit of a lighter note, Sparks, you might enjoy hearing this. Sometime in the next couple of weeks or so, Dante will be back in town."

Sparks' ears had been drooping ever since Danika had shown him the files, but they perked right back up the instant he heard the name. "Dante? He's coming to visit?"

Carmen grinned and nodded. "Just got his letter this morning. He's not sure when he'll be here, but it'll be before the holiday season for sure."

"Really? Wow, that's fantastic! Good heavens, I'm not even sure how long it's been since I last saw him."

"Dante, huh?" Danika said, "I've never actually met him. Heh, I just heard the stories."

"Well…That's something to look forward to, I suppose. I wonder what he's been up to…"

"I'm sure a lot of our alumni will be excited to meet him," Carmen said, "The Active Team's almost completely different than it was the last time he was here."

* * *

Sparks groaned and took another sip of coffee. It had been six days since that horrible incident in the marketplace. Sparks had been trying to keep a positive attitude to pull himself out of the funk he'd fallen into that day. However, the questions surrounding Ziggy and his parents had been holding him down.

Ziggy himself had been busy doing his chores. Only Sparks, Danika and Carmen knew about his parents; nobody else had been told. As such, Sparks tried his best to assign Ziggy jobs that were in the company of others, such as helping Liz in the kitchen. To his credit, the Buizel didn't seem like he was letting the incident get him down too much. Though, Sparks knew that was bound to change once Ziggy headed out the door again.

He and Danika were still playing the waiting game while Carmen tried to get permission for their records probe. Sparks tried to behave like nothing had changed, especially around Ziggy, but it was difficult. As far as Sparks knew, Ziggy hadn't lied about a single thing since they'd met, so if he really had lied about his parents then Sparks didn't know what to think. What was his reason for lying?

Ziggy definitely knew something was wrong. He had asked Sparks a few times if everything was okay. Sparks tried to cover his bases by just saying he was still stressed out about the marketplace incident. Ziggy was a smart kid, though. He could tell that there was something more going on, and Sparks knew.

Sparks tiredly glanced around. It was late in the evening and members of the team were just starting to get back from their expeditions. Dinner would be served in just over an hour. In the room, having already returned, were Kona, Jules and Akash. Kona kept giving him concerned looks, but otherwise nobody was really talking to anyone.

The door to the common room opened. Sparks silently hoped it was Danika or Carmen, here to proclaim that they'd solved the mystery of Ziggy. This was not the case, however, as Terry and Rico stepped through the door.

"Ah, good to be back!" Rico commented.

"Nice job climbing that tree, Rico," Terry said.

"Haha! A successful day all around!" Rico then headed straight for the couch and flopped onto one of its cushions. Terry followed behind him and sat next to him.

"Good day, you two?" Kona asked.

"Great day!" Terry chirped.

"Another successful mission by Terry and Rico!" Rico chimed in.

"Nice, nice," Kona said, "It's been a while since we've had a team as tight-knit as you two. I think I can count on one paw the missions either of you have taken without the other."

"Yup! We're inseparable and unbeatable!" Rico said proudly. Terry simply chuckled quietly.

"Easy now…" Kona said with a playful roll of his eyes.

"Hi, Sparks!" Terry said, waving to the Raichu, "You look tired. Are you okay?"

Sparks shook his head and said, "That's just what it is. I'm tired."

"Oh, okay."

"Hey, by the way…" Akash spoke up quietly, though loud enough for the pair on the couch to hear, "Where were you two yesterday?"

"It was our day off," Terry replied.

"Yeah, I know that, but _where_ were you? You were outta the building all day! I'm pretty sure I went to bed before you two even got back."

Terry hesitated for a moment. "We, uh, we were out…somewhere. Rico and I, together, I mean y'know, the two of us…went to this place in the city. Y'know, saw some stuff."

Akash tilted his head. "All day, though?"

"Yeah, all day. Allllll day long. Lots to see, lots to do. Didn't really have a chance to come back to the guild until late, because were out…uh…out, um…" Terry glanced at the Pokémon at the table, all of whom were looking at him now. He wilted slightly under their combined gazes.

"Must have been really interesting, then," Kona commented, "Where was this place you two went?"

"It was…in the city, y'know. I forget the street name because I was- because we were…" Terry continued to fumble over his words for a moment, and started to look nervous. "I don't…remember where it was…or what it-"

"Sweetheart," Rico said, interrupting him as he leaned over and gently wrapped his paws around Terry's neck, draping them across his fuzzy chest. "It'll probably be a lot easier if you just tell them we were on a date."

The room fell completely silent, and Terry's face instantly lit up like a Tamato Berry. His eyes shot open wider than dinner plates. He was frozen on the spot for a few seconds before looking back over his shoulder at the Riolu and hissing, "Rico!"

"What?" Rico said with a laugh. He then gestured to the others with his paw and said, "Everybody's already figured it out."

Terry blinked a few times, then slowly turned to look at the others. "…Really?" he quietly asked.

Sparks, Kona, Akash and Jules all shared a glance and then nodded.

Terry's face turned even redder. "Oh…"

Rico hugged him a little tighter and said, "He took me to see a stage play, which I thought was gonna be boring but there were cool sword fights and action scenes in it. Then we ate at a fancy restaurant and ended the day on the hills south of the city, where we sat on the grass and watched the stars." He chuckled and kissed the top of Terry's head. "It was awesome."

"Aww," Kona said with a smile, "That's really sweet."

"Sounds like a wonderful day," Sparks added, "I'm glad you had a great time."

"Oh, we definitely did," Rico said.

Terry was still just sitting there in Rico's embrace, slowly suffocating under an overwhelming blush on his cheeks. When silence returned to the room, he squeaked out another question. "You all…really knew already?"

"Dude," Jules said, "It was pretty obvious."

"You two are like a perfect match for each other," Sparks said, "You do everything together, and I don't think I've ever seen either of you get mad at the other."

"I think a lot of us were just waiting for the inevitable moment when the dating would start," Kona added.

"Oh my gosh…" Terry whispered, "I feel silly…"

"Aw, c'mere you fluff ball," Rico said with a chuckle, pulling Terry back and causing the Eevee to fall backwards into Rico's lap.

"Wah!" Terry cried out in surprise.

"You're cute when you're flustered."

Terry looked up at Rico while upside-down for a moment and then pouted. "You're gonna embarrass me in front of all our guildmates every chance you get now, right?"

"Mmmmaybe…" Rico stuck out his tongue, earning him a light bat on the cheek from Terry's paw.

"So," Sparks spoke up, "When did this all start? I mean, when did you realize that the two of you were more than just friends?"

"A few months ago," Terry answered.

"Middle school," Rico answered simultaneously.

Terry's eyes bugged out for a moment and he looked up at Rico in shock. "_Middle_ school?"

"Uh huh."

"You never told me that! Are you serious?"

"Absolutely," Rico said with a grin, and lifted one of his paws to boop Terry's nose, "And I was so happy when you finally worked up the courage to ask me out."

Terry didn't even react to the boop. He was still staring at Rico in awe. "You…I didn't realize you've been…for _that_ long…" He gulped before saying, "Why didn't you ever say anything?"

"I didn't want to make you uncomfortable, or break any boundaries. I knew that if it was mutual, then you would eventually ask me." Rico chuckled softly and added, "I had faith that we'd be together. Somehow I just knew."

"Aww, Rico…" Terry reached his paw up again, though this time to caress Rico's cheek, "Now look at all the lost time we gotta make up for. I gotta take you on a date every day for like two months!"

Rico laughed at that. "You're sweet."

"Just don't start making out on the couch," Jules piped up suddenly, "There's a guild rule about that." Again, Terry and Rico responded simultaneously.

"We weren't gonna…!" Terry replied indignantly.

"There _is_?" Rico said incredulously.

"Either that," Jules said, "Or Carmen really didn't like me bringin' my girlfriend in here to…Y'know, it's probably that, now that I think about it…"

"Well anyway," Kona said, quickly trying to divert the conversation, "We're all happy for you. This is only gonna make your guild partnership even stronger."

Terry laughed, looking as if he'd finally shaken off his case of Tamato-face. "Heck yeah! Team Terry and Rico are better than ever!"

"Boo-yah!" Rico chimed in.

A moment later, the door opened. Again, Sparks' hopes rose up, and they soared when he saw that it was Carmen. "Hello, everyone," she said, glancing at all the occupants of the room, "I trust we all got some good work done today?"

A chorus of responses followed, with everyone talking about the jobs they had done that day.

"Sparks," she said, addressing him, "Danika's project got clearance. I'll tell you more about it later."

The Raichu's ears perked up. Carmen was clearly trying to keep things confidential from the other guildmembers for the time being, but he understood her message. Danika had gotten clearance to probe the city records, and she was likely doing just that at this moment. He silently celebrated in his head. One step closer to the answer.

Carmen then made her way over to the table and sat down, stretching her limbs and letting out a sigh. She looked like she was just a few degrees away from 'overworked', which was how she usually looked. It was a skill of hers she had developed over the years, so she never crossed that threshold.

"Well, good work, everybody," she said in a more conversational tone, "What are we talking about?"

"Terry and Rico's date yesterday," Kona answered plainly.

"Oh Arceus…" Terry moaned, covering his face with his paws, "We're gonna be the office gossip, aren't we?"

"Ah, indeed?" Carmen said, responding to Kona, "I had a feeling yesterday's outing was a date. We're all talking about it now? No longer a deep, dark secret?"

Terry moaned again, but Rico just snickered. "Whatever. I'm just happy bein' happy."

"Oh, of course," Carmen said in a more friendly tone, "We're all happy for the both of you."

"The two of you are cute together!" Kona said.

"Shut up! No we're not," Rico retorted.

"By the way, I'm glad for your newfound love, but Terry you need to start your combat training this week. No buts, buddy."

"Oh… Right, yeah, okay. Sorry I took so long…"

"Had other things on your mind?" Jules quipped.

"More _important_ things, obviously," Rico said cheekily.

Sparks watched as the group continued their friendly banter. Eventually Terry started feeling less and less embarrassed about his relationship with Rico being out in the open, and was soon smiling and laughing along with everyone. Sparks had seen the connection they shared from the moment they both joined. He was happy to see the two of them together, and it brought back melancholy memories of past relationships of his own.

Everyone was laughing about something Sparks hadn't been paying attention to. He glanced around at all the smiling faces, but noticed one outlier. Akash was sitting still, looking off into the distance with a blue look. Sparks frowned sympathetically, noting the Deerling's muted orange coat. The seasons tended to play rough with Akash's emotions. Autumn and especially winter had a habit of making him feel down for no apparent reason.

He knew Akash didn't like others fussing over him so Sparks didn't bother him. He simply made a mental note to try and find something fun to do with Akash sometime soon. He remembered that Dante would be in town soon, so maybe there was an opportunity there.

* * *

"Sparks?"

The Raichu glanced up. He had been sitting on the couch in the common room, perusing some documents Carmen had given him about prospective work for the guild. He saw that the one who had called him was Danika, and the Sneasel was just poking her head through the door that led to the hallway.

She didn't say anything else. She simply used her claw to beckon him over. A quick shiver ran up Sparks' spine. He immediately got up and made his way over to her, and then silently followed her. She led him up the stairs and eventually to her office.

Once they were both inside and Sparks had closed the door, he simply asked, "What did you find?"

Danika regarded him with a troubled gaze. She bit her lip and drummed her claws on the desk next to her. The fact that she wasn't answering right away, and seemed as if she was about to deliver bad news, made Sparks' blood run cold. He figured she had found exactly what they had been looking for. She'd found evidence that Ziggy was lying and tricking them, and the feeling of despair that went with such a notion began to well within him. What would they do now? Could Ziggy stay with them? _Should_ he stay?

"I, uh…" she finally spoke up, "I didn't find anything."

Sparks blinked. What? That was pretty much the opposite of what he had been expecting to hear. "What do you mean you didn't find anything?"

Danika frowned. "I probed the records, and I searched birth certificates. I searched for the year that was listed on these files…" She held up the files for the two Floatzel. "…and I gave myself a five year buffer in either direction…"

"Uh huh," Sparks said with a nod, "And?"

"There was nothing," she said, shaking her head, "There are no birth records for a shiny Buizel in that time frame. The last recorded shiny Buizel to be born was from 30 years ago, and that _definitely_ isn't Ziggy."

Sparks' ears drooped and he gave Danika a confused look. "But…What does that mean? There has to be a record of a shiny Buizel. He's in the kitchen with Liz right now!"

"It means," Danika responded in a low tone, "that Ziggy's parents never got him a birth certificate."

"What…?" Sparks murmured

"Sparks…I think we've been looking at this the complete wrong way," Danika said with a sigh, "Ziggy wasn't lying about growing up with parents. He was telling the truth."

"Then, what?"

Danika looked up at him sadly and said, "Sparks…Ziggy's parents abandoned him."

Sparks felt a chill run over him, making his fur stand on end. "No…" he whispered.

"If Ziggy had grown up with his parents, as we had been assuming, they would have gotten him a birth certificate," Danika explained, "The city records the moment an egg is laid in the hospital on the parents' record, which is why it shows on these two files, but a birth certificate is the responsibility of the parents to get. This gives them a chance to wait for the egg to hatch, pick out a name, and other such matters. Obviously there's penalties and fines if they put it off…"

Sparks listened intently. He'd never had cubs, so he hadn't known the process behind getting a birth certificate.

"On a whim," Danika continued, "I checked law enforcement records from this date." Again, she indicated the date of birth on the parents' files. "There were no recorded fines or penalties. If they'd raised him, but neglected to get him a birth certificate, I would have found some…"

"But you didn't," Sparks said softly, "and so…"

"So what probably happened was they laid his egg in the hospital, abandoned him, and then told the officials at the city that he'd died in the egg or something, so no fines were imposed…"

Sparks glanced away and held a paw to his forehead. All of this new information swirled around rapidly in his head. "Oh no…" he murmured, "Oh, Ziggy…Poor Ziggy…"

Danika sighed. "I feel really awful that we just jumped to assuming that he was lying…when the reality is so much worse."

"So…" Sparks spoke in a terse voice, "Everything Ziggy told us is still true…except that instead of his parents dying when he was a cub…they just left him out on the street?"

"That's the way it seems…"

"Oh dear Arceus…" Sparks could only shake his head in disbelief. "How…could someone just _leave_ a little cub out on their own to fend for themselves? How could anyone be so cruel? So heartless? So…selfish?"

"I know, Sparks…" Danika murmured. She removed her glasses for a moment and rubbed at her eyes with the back of her claw. "I don't understand it either…"

Silence filled the room for a moment as the two Pokemon simply sat, deep in thought. Sparks could feel a heavy cloud of depression stemming from pity for Ziggy and what he'd gone through. Plus, like Danika, he was feeling upset with himself that he had assumed Ziggy was the one who had done wrong. He was just relieved he hadn't confronted Ziggy about it and had chosen to wait until they had gotten more information.

"So…What do you think?" Danika spoke up.

"Hm?"

"What should we do?"

He turned to look at her, seeing that she was frowning in concern. "Do about what?"

She held up the two folders she was still carrying. "Do we show him?"

Sparks eyed the two folders. The information about Ziggy's parents. The parents, they now knew, had abandoned and betrayed their own son.

Looking up at Danika again, Sparks found he wasn't sure how to answer. What they had discovered about Ziggy's parents was horrible. He didn't want to have to be the one to tell Ziggy that the parents he had never known actually turned out to be despicable Pokémon. But, in some way, Sparks felt like he and Danika were obligated to share what they had learned. However callous they may have been, they were still Ziggy's parents. They were the ones to thank for bringing Ziggy into this world in the first place.

He sighed in frustration. "How come everything we learn about this kid just brings up more questions?"

"He is an enigma, that one…" Danika agreed.

"He's such a nice Pokémon. He doesn't deserve any of the crap he's going through…"

"Do you think…?" Danika paused. "D'ya think they abandoned him because…he hatched shiny?"

Sparks winced. "I wouldn't be surprised," he replied darkly.

"Oh _no_…"

Another couple minutes of contemplative silence passed by. Sparks found he couldn't focus on a solution because he was too distracted by his disgust. The very idea of parents doing this to a child was unfathomable to him. Plus, the fact that they had both died at the same time implied that they had stayed together as mates, even after abandoning their child. They had both come to terms with the decision to abandon Ziggy, fully agreeing with one another to do it.

"Well," Sparks said, eventually deciding to break the silence, "We should tell Carmen what we found, in any case."

Danika glanced up at him, and then nodded. "You're right."

"She's the only other one privy to this at the moment, and she helped orchestrate the records probe."

"She's not gonna like what we're gonna tell her…"

* * *

The following day, Sparks entered into the common room with Danika a few steps behind him. Looking in he saw that Ziggy was at the table, eating from a bag of chips, and Kona was sitting a fair distance away from him reading a book. It was early in the afternoon, so nobody else was in the room.

Sparks glanced over his shoulder at Danika for a moment. She didn't look happy, and Sparks couldn't blame her, but she nodded to him.

"Hey, Ziggy?"

The Buizel looked up and saw them, his eyes lighting up a little when he saw who was at the door. "Hi, Sparks. Hi, Danika."

For a moment, Sparks just stood there and tried to think of exactly what to say. After a couple seconds of silence, he resigned to simply walk over and sit down next to Ziggy. The Buizel eyed him curiously as he did.

Danika took a few steps in and closed the door behind her. She was holding two manila-coloured files, which were now painfully familiar to her and Sparks.

"What's wrong?" Ziggy asked.

"Um…Ziggy?" Danika said hesitantly, clutching the two files, "We, uh…We found something. As you know, I've been sorting through old citizenship records and stuff like that. Obviously you know, you've been helping me. Um…"

Sparks watched as the Sneasel self-consciously rubbed the back of her neck with her other claw. She had never been comfortable when it came to delivering bad news. He gave her a nod of encouragement.

"W-what is it…?" Ziggy asked nervously. The Buizel looked over at Sparks curiously for a moment before looking back at Danika.

The Sneasel gulped, fidgeted for a moment, and then eventually sighed. "Ziggy…" she spoke in a heavy tone as she held up the files, "We…found the records for your parents."

The silence that followed was thicker than chowder. Before there had been the occasional sound of Kona turning the page in his book, but even that was absent now. Nobody moved and, for a while, nobody said anything. Ziggy was looking at Danika and not him, so Sparks didn't know how he was reacting to this.

"Are…" Ziggy's voice was so quiet it was almost imperceptible. "Are they…alive?"

Danika frowned and shook her head. "No, they're deceased," she answered, "I just found their old records."

The silence returned with a vengeance. The pause was even longer this time, and felt even heavier. Sparks regarded Ziggy, still unable to see his face. The Buizel occasionally made subtle movements of his head, but nothing more. It seemed like an eternity had passed before Ziggy finally said something more.

"Oh… Okay."

Sparks looked down at the Buizel in surprise. His answer had been so plain, almost conversational in nature. It was as if somebody had just told him his bedsheets would be out of the wash in five minutes. He acknowledged the information, but nothing more.

"Buddy…?" Sparks spoke up. When Ziggy turned to look at him, Sparks was taken aback by what he saw. There were no tears in the Buizel's eyes. There was no sign of sadness, remorse, fear, anxiety, anger, regret or longing. There was no curiosity for more information. There was nothing at all. Ziggy looked unperturbed by the information. A moment later, he simply went back to eating his chips.

Sparks looked up to Danika, who seemed to share his bafflement at Ziggy's reaction. "Um…" she spoke up, "Do you…want to see…them?"

Ziggy looked up at her for a moment, and then shrugged and said, "Not really."

"…No?" Sparks said, his voice quiet and hesitant.

Ziggy turned back to look at him. "Not really, no," he repeated, "I didn't know them. They weren't there for me, so…whatever."

Sparks' jaw dropped a little. He shot Danika a look, who just looked back at him helplessly. "They weren't…?" Sparks murmured softly, taken aback by what Ziggy had said.

"Well, you two both looked really sad when you came in here with my parents' files," Ziggy explained, "Instead of being happy, so I know that means they did something bad."

Silence filled the room. Sparks just stared at the young Buizel for a moment, his jaw still hanging open. "B-buddy…"

"They abandoned me, right?"

Sparks' mouth worked uselessly for a moment as he tried to formulate a response. He glanced over at Danika again, who simply shrugged. Eventually, he just sighed and looked Ziggy in the eyes with a sympathetic gaze. "That's what we think, yes…"

"I thought so…" Ziggy murmured, his tone going dark momentarily before going back to sounding normal, "Well, whatever…"

"Ziggy…I'm sorry, buddy," Sparks said, "I'm sorry that this happened…"

Ziggy shook his head. "It's fine, Sparks. Whatever. I didn't know them. I'm not upset at losing them because I never had them in the first place. If they didn't want anything to do with me, then I don't really want anything to do with them."

"That's fair, I suppose," Danika said, causing them both to look over at her, "We just thought we should tell you. Didn't feel right to keep it a secret from you."

"Well, uh, thanks," Ziggy replied simply.

Sparks bit his lip. He had come in here fully expecting to have a weeping Buizel in his paws. He had mentally prepared himself to deal with an anguished Ziggy, but the expected explosion of emotions ended up being nothing more than a dud. He didn't quite know what to make of the circumstances. Was Ziggy's reaction to this a healthy one? _Should_ he care about these two, or was he right in wanting to just cast them aside? They _had_ callously abandoned him, after all.

"Uh…All right, then," Sparks said, "I guess you really don't want to talk about it, but…Y'know, if you ever change your mind and you do, just come find me. We can talk about anything you want."

Ziggy nodded. "Thanks, Sparks. I know."

A rather awkward silence followed this, and Sparks eventually decided to just get up and end this unusual interaction. He walked over to Danika, shrugging to her. She seemed just as conflicted about Ziggy's reaction as he did. He could see her fidgeting with her claws as she held the files, as if they had information within them that was just begging to burst out.

"Might as well go put those files onto the computer and file 'em away, right?" Sparks said to her.

"Yeah…Yeah, I guess…" she said, without much conviction in her tone.

"Not much else to discuss here…" Sparks then started to head for the door, with Danika following behind him.

"…Wait."

Sparks and Danika both turned back to Ziggy. "What?" he asked.

"I guess I'm…just a _little_ curious about something," he admitted.

"What's that?" Danika asked.

He paused for a moment before asking, "Just…What were their names?"

Sparks and Danika shared a look. Then, Danika looked back at Ziggy and said, "Your father's name was Mateni, and your mother's name was Leilani."

"Oh," Ziggy said with a nod, "That's neat…"

"No way…"

All three heads turned towards Kona. Sparks had forgotten he was even in the room. "Huh?" Ziggy asked him.

"Sorry," he said with a quiet chuckle, "My mom's name is Leilani too."

"Really?"

"Yeah. She lives over in Lively Town now. I haven't seen her in a long while, but we still write to each other. I think you'd like her if you met her, Ziggy. She's very sweet."

"Is she a Samurott…?"

Kona shook his head. "No, she's a Dewott like me. She never ended up evolving, but that suits her just fine."

Sparks took a step back and watched as Ziggy and Kona started to fall into a casual conversation about the Dewott's family. Just like that, the awkward topic of Ziggy's parentage had come and gone. Not with a bang, but with a whisper, as if it had never been brought up in the first place.

"Sparks…" Danika whispered from beside him.

"Hm?"

"…You think he's gonna be okay? You don't think he's, like, bottling up his emotions or anything?"

Sparks took one more look at Ziggy and then shook his head. "He doesn't bottle up his emotions," he answered, "His emotions control him. I think he…legitimately just does not care…"

"Wow…"

"It's…a little shocking, but I guess it's not unheard of. He has no frame of reference. He doesn't even know what having parents is like, so he doesn't know what he's even missed out on."

Danika gave him a look, and then glanced one more time at the two files in her claws. "Well…All right, then…"

"Yeah…" Sparks said. A moment later, Danika walked out the door, taking the two files with her. As shockingly as it had begun, another chapter on the mysterious story of Ziggy the Buizel came to a quiet, unceremonious end.


	13. Celebrity

Chapter 13 \- **Celebrity**

"G'morning, Ziggy!" Sparks greeted as the groggy Buizel stumbled into the common room.

"Mornin'…" he murmured in reply.

Sparks watched as Ziggy slowly made his way over to the long table and sat down next to him. Though it looked like he was having trouble shaking off his sleepiness, he otherwise looked well. Sparks gave him a welcoming smile, hoping to start the day off bright and cheery. Ziggy answered with his typical little half-smile.

It was the last week of November. The increasingly ambiguous 'holiday season' would be starting soon. Christmas was just around the corner and the temperature continued to drop. As Radiant City was a coastal city, they typically didn't see much snow, and if they did it was usually in January or February. That didn't stop the temperature from plunging below zero, but thankfully it hadn't done so yet.

November had been a long, slow month. It had been quite some time since Ziggy's unfortunate incident in the marketplace. Though Ziggy had escaped from the situation physically unharmed, it had sadly dealt a heavy blow to his confidence. All the work the two of them had done to make him feel more comfortable in the public's eye and the push towards going outside had been shunted back to square one, and moving forward seemed to go even slower. Ziggy, thankfully, still felt very comfortable within the confines of the guild halls and was still good friends with Carmen and the active team.

The only real strides forward were when it started to rain more frequently. Eventually, Ziggy couldn't resist the weather's call and started standing out in the rain in the courtyard again. Ziggy still kept the hoodie he got from Kona in his room, and sometimes he would wear it indoors on days when he was feeling blue.

In the meantime, he had been working with Ziggy on his reading and writing skills, some social confidence-building with guildmembers, including some outside of the active team whom Ziggy hadn't met, and whatever else crossed his mind that he thought would be helpful. Ziggy had taken to really focusing on his chores and seemed to be trying really hard to earn his keep. It actually meant that Sparks was spending more time doing other errands and helping others out with missions more often than in the fall.

But, in the end, the prospect of simply going outside still terrified the Buizel. Sparks was really hoping to get Ziggy out the doors, even just a little bit, before the holiday season. He was determined not to let one single bad event keep Ziggy locked indoors for the rest of his life, no matter how bad the timing was.

"Sleepy, buddy?" he asked.

"Wus fur breakfast?" Ziggy mumbled.

Sparks chuckled and ruffled the fur on his head. He was happy that, aside from going outside, Ziggy was still _trying_ to improve himself. He was putting in the effort. Sparks knew that, eventually and with his guiding paw, Ziggy could go outside again. Maybe, just, not to the marketplace this time.

It was early morning, so the members of the active team were all waking up and filling into the common room for breakfast. Presently, the door opened to reveal Rico and Terry entering the room. "Hey! There he is!" Sparks called out to them, "Terry the ass-kicker!"

Terry blushed and shot him a glare. "Shut up, Sparks!"

Sparks laughed and said, "No, but seriously. Congratulations on passing combat training."

"Th-thanks…" Terry muttered, rubbing his forepaws together awkwardly. He was then startled as Rico suddenly pulled him into a sideways hug.

"Terry and Rico just get better and better!" he proclaimed with a cheeky grin, "Now we can _both_ fight off evil creatures from the depths of hell!"

"Rico, stop it…" Terry said, though he couldn't help smiling, "Combat training's just a precaution. I don't plan on getting into _any_ fights if I can help it."

Rico just snickered and gave Terry a peck on the cheek. "That's why you're adorable…"

"You doing anything to celebrate?" Sparks asked.

"We are, actually," Rico replied, "Going out for ice cream after dinner."

"Ice cream? Any chance you could invite me, and probably about 10 others? You know how popular ice cream is around here."

Rico laughed and shook his head. "A third wheel is bad enough, buddy."

"Gotcha, gotcha," Sparks said with a chuckle.

One by one, the rest of the active team filed in until only Carmen and Liz were absent. Chatter began to arise about what the day would have in store for everyone. As usual, a delicious Liz breakfast was on everyone's mind, and it seemed the Miltank couldn't arrive fast enough.

The doors opened and everyone got excited, but there was audible disappointment when it was Carmen that stepped through instead of Liz. "Oh, I see the mutiny has started," she said dryly.

"You're not food," Shay quipped.

"When did I hire a bunch of Gulpin?" she asked as she took a seat near Sparks. When she noticed him she said, "Oh, hey. By the way, I think Dante will be in today."

Sparks looked back at her with interest. "Really? Today?"

"He said he was only two days out when he sent his last letter, and I got that yesterday, so he's probably either close to town or in town already."

"Nice! I look forward to it!"

When Sparks turned back to look at Ziggy, the Buizel was giving him a curious and slightly nervous look. "Who's…Dante?"

"Oh gosh, that's right," Sparks murmured, "You probably don't know who Dante is. Wow. Well, uh, why don't you come and meet him when he shows up?"

Ziggy's nervousness visibly increased. "H-huh?"

"Oh, don't worry, I _promise_ you… He's as nice as I am…maybe even nicer. He's a very kind and gentle soul." Sparks chuckled and added, "Y'know, I think you'll like him."

"I will…?" Ziggy asked, his curiousness returning.

"Just a hunch…"

Their conversation came to an end because a moment later, Liz arrived bringing her much anticipated bounty of food. The team must have been particularly hungry, because her arrival was met with a loud cheer.

Sparks looked over at Ziggy once more, who was already focused on the food. In this aspect, Ziggy's progress was a bit paradoxical. While going outside and meeting strangers out in Radiant City was still, at the moment, a terrifying ordeal to him, Ziggy had actually been making good strides in meeting strangers who worked in the building. Sparks had been regularly taking him up to the second floor to meet with some of the Pokémon who worked up there, and it had gone fairly well.

So Sparks wondered how things would go over when he brought someone from the outside to the inside.

* * *

"Visitor in the main hall."

It was a few hours later, after the rest of the team had left to do missions out in the city, when Sparks heard the voice through his badge. He didn't immediately recognize the voice, so it wasn't one of the active team members. He stood up from the couch excitedly.

"Hey, Ziggy! That's probably him!"

Ziggy, who had been studying at the table, looked at him and said, "Huh?"

"Someone's at the door, and it's probably Dante. Let's go see him!"

"Uh…" Ziggy glanced around nervously for a moment as he put down his book, "I….uh…"

Sparks stood up and strode over to the Buizel. "I'll be with you, Ziggy, don't panic. I promise you'll like him. It's almost impossible not to! Haha…"

"We're…We're not going…outside, though, right?"

"No, bud. He's in the main hall. C'mon, buddy, follow me. You can hold my paw if you like, but let's not keep him waiting."

Ziggy gulped and wrung his paws nervously, but nodded a moment later. "A-all right…"

Then, they made their way over to the door that led to the main hall. Ziggy did decide to hold his paw, and Sparks could feel him hovering quite close to him, but he was glad that Ziggy was trying at least a little bit to be brave. Sparks was really confident that Ziggy would like Dante, though. He could almost guarantee it.

He led Ziggy through the door and the pair entered the grand entry hall. As they approached the base of the large staircase, Sparks was glancing around and looking for their visitor. It took him a moment to find him, standing off to the side and idly admiring a painting on the wall.

Sparks paused in mid-step. The one standing in the room was indeed a visitor, but it certainly wasn't Dante. The only thing this Pokémon and Dante had in common was the colour blue. Instead of his old friend, Sparks saw a tall, sleek, unfamiliar Pokémon with long limbs and an even longer tail. He was wearing a short white coat that only covered half of his torso.

The Inteleon noticed them and acknowledged them with a smile. "Ah! Hello, there," he greeted them.

"Good afternoon, sir," Sparks replied. Since this wasn't Dante, he immediately defaulted to his more professional manner to welcome this new guest, "Welcome to the Rescue Society. How may we help you?"

"Ah, yes…" the Inteleon said, seeming to hesitate slightly, "I…believe I am expected here… I do hope this is the right location. Ah, but no of course not, you just said its name…"

Sparks frowned, slightly confused. "I'm sorry… The Rescue Society is expecting you?"

"Yes, quite so… Although, erm…" Trailing off, the Inteleon definitely appeared hesitant about whatever he was trying to say. Sparks was about to press him further when suddenly there was a voice from the top of the staircase.

"Oh! Dr. Hilo!"

Sparks, as well as the Inteleon, turned to see a fretful Danika at the top of the stairs.

"Oh my goodness, Dr. Hilo! I am so sorry. I forgot that you were coming in today." Danika then proceeded to rush down the stairs so she could join the group, panting slightly as she approached.

"You must be Miss Danika," the Inteleon greeted with a subtle bow of his head.

"Yes," Danika said with a smile, "Yes, that would be me. Just 'Danika' is fine, though."

"Of course. My apologies."

Danika then turned to Sparks and said, "Sparks, this is Dr. Konala Hilo. He and his company have agreed to work with us on, uh, the project you and I were working on previously."

Sparks' ears perked up as the puzzle pieces fell into place. "Oh! Oh, I see."

Dr. Hilo chuckled and said, "Ah, yes! Yes, of course! You must be Raz then! Danika mentioned to me that you were 'in the know' about what is going on, so I suppose that's all in order then." He then extended a paw and said, "Pleased to meet you. I am Dr. Konala Hilo, head researcher, team leader and project manager at Jiuji Laboratories."

Sparks returned the pawshake and said, "Nice to meet you. You can just call me 'Sparks'."

"Sparks, then," Dr. Hilo said with a polite nod, "Pleasure to meet you as well."

The Inteleon then turned to Danika once more and began to discuss how excited he and his company were to start working with her, so Sparks took the opportunity to check on Ziggy. He could feel that the little Buizel's paws hadn't stopped hugging his side, so he knew Ziggy hadn't run and hid somewhere. Sparks turned around to find Ziggy nervously shielding himself behind the Raichu's body, looking up at him in confusion.

Sparks knelt down and said, "Sorry, it wasn't him. Dante's not here yet. This is somebody else."

Ziggy looked into his eyes for a moment, but then they shifted to looking over Sparks' shoulder. Sparks knew that Ziggy was raptly watching the Inteleon, and he could see the fear in Ziggy's eyes. The Buizel was breathing quietly but very quickly, and Sparks could tell that he was trying hard to keep himself from panicking.

"You don't have to stick around," Sparks said with a comforting smile, "You can go back into the common room if you want. This was my mistake."

Ziggy's eyes flitted around nervously for a moment, and then he eventually nodded. "O-okay…" he whispered softly. He seemed unwilling to leave Sparks' side, so the Raichu decided to lead him over to the door.

"I won't be long out here," Sparks said to him.

"Is he…" Ziggy murmured, looking over Sparks' shoulder again, "Is he…coming in here…?"

Sparks also glanced over his shoulder. Dr. Hilo and Danika were still conversing. "No, I don't think so," Sparks answered, "I think he's going up to Danika's office."

"Oh…Okay…"

Sparks turned to look at Ziggy again and let him through the door. "You gonna be okay in here?"

"Um…Yeah…"

"All right."

Sparks gave the Buizel one last friendly smile and then shut the door. He then made his way back over to where the Inteleon and Sneasel were standing.

Dr. Hilo saw him approach and turned his attention over to him. "My, my… Who was that? Guild project? Didn't expect to see one of those around here…"

"What?" Sparks furrowed his brow and gave the Inteleon a puzzled look. "You mean the Buizel? He's a friend of the guild and he's living here with us for the moment…" His expression hardened and he added, "That was an…interesting choice of language there."

The Inteleon looked equally as puzzled for a brief moment, but then softly gasped. "Oh! Oh dear, I just realized what I said. I am so sorry. You must forgive my slip of the tongue. That was _not_ what I intended by that…" He looked embarrassed and scratched the back of his head. "I come from a rather…upscale family, let's just say. I grew up around Pokémon who acted in a certain way and, well, old habits can die hard sometimes…"

Sparks studied him for a moment, and decided he accepted his explanation. It was definitely not unheard of to pick up bad habits from one's parents. "Oh, okay," he said, "Just try to be careful around him, okay? He's sensitive to that kind of stuff."

"Of course, of course. I am so sorry. I rarely ever get the chance to even interact with Pokémon like him in my line of work. Please give him a sincere apology on my behalf when you next see him."

Sparks nodded. "I will."

"So, Dr. Hilo," Danika cut in, "As I was saying, Sparks and I have made pretty much zero headway with this. Do you really think your company can figure out this mystery?"

"Well, I do not know for sure. That is the beauty and the curse of science, is it not? However, I can promise you that we will try our best. Believe you me, I too am thirsty for the answers that this object holds in secrecy…"

"Perhaps we should just go take a look, then?" Danika suggested.

"Yes, that sounds like a capital idea."

"Can I tag along?" Sparks asked, "Or am I still locked behind non-disclosure stuff?"

"Oh, it shouldn't be a problem," Dr. Hilo said, "You were working on this formerly so you already know everything that's already known about this. I doubt I'll come up with the answer upon simply laying eyes on it."

The three Pokémon then made their way up to Danika's office, with her and Sparks leading the way while the Inteleon followed dutifully behind them. He had a very professional outward appearance, even down to the way he walked, making him appear more like a bureaucrat than a scientist. Yet, Sparks did not get much of an air of superiority that usually accompanies such an outward appearance. Dr. Hilo seemed outgoing and personable, at least from the short time Sparks had known him.

Soon enough, the group was in Danika's office. Sparks closed the door behind them while Danika turned on the lights. Dr. Hilo's attention was immediately drawn to Danika's computer.

"You have one too, I see!" he said.

"Oh? You have one?" Danika asked.

"Indeed, our laboratory signed up as an early adopter. I must say, though, yours seems more advanced. They are fascinating creations, are they not?"

Thankfully, Danika made her way over towards the safe resting in the corner of the room before she could geek out about her computer. Sparks and Dr. Hilo remained a fair distance back and allowed the Sneasel to carefully input the safe's combination. Sparks had become all too familiar with what resided inside, but the Inteleon next to him watched with rapt attention.

Danika released the lock a moment later and opened the safe's door, allowing the very faint blue glow from within to leak out. Danika then stepped to the side, gesturing for Dr. Hilo to get a closer look.

As the Inteleon got closer and knelt down, Sparks once again regarded the small object. It was about the size and shape of a small rock, but its colour was an off-putting mix of dark blue and black. It glowed dimly with a blue hue that was strangely lighter than the shade of blue on the object itself. It was smooth, like obsidian, and from certain angles it almost seemed translucent. Every so often, the glow would get marginally brighter for about a second before dimming back to its prior state.

Until today, only three Pokémon in the guild knew of this thing's existence; himself, Danika and Carmen. Sparks had been the one to find it initially. He had been out on a walk in the woods outside of the city on one of his days off. He had actually fallen asleep at the base of a tree after he had stopped to take a rest. When he was stirred from his nap and started walking again, he found it about 20 metres away from where he had been sleeping, just lying on the ground. There had been nothing else unusual in the area.

"My word…" Dr. Hilo whispered softly, "What an extraordinary thing you've discovered…"

"You can pick it up if you want to," Danika informed him, "We've tested it as best we can, and it's safe to handle directly."

"Truly?" Dr. Hilo replied, shooting Danika a surprised look. When she nodded, he turned back to the safe and gently reached in to pick up the object.

"The only thing we know for sure about this rock is that it's not a rock," Sparks said, "The consistency is off, but just slightly, and obviously you can visually see that it looks unusual. Its weight does not seem to match its mass. There are some very, very minute electrical readings coming off of this, though not even strong enough for a Magnemite to pick up on if you were to walk past one with this in your pocket."

Dr. Hilo was turning the rock over and examining it closely from all side. "This is truly fascinating," he said, a hint of reverence in his voice, "_Truly_ fascinating! This is much more interesting than I was expecting."

"There's also…" Danika spoke up, "unconfirmed reports of it…vibrating."

"What do you mean, 'vibrating'?"

"Someone was in this room," Sparks explained, "besides the two of us, and they heard it 'buzzing' against the side of the safe. However, neither of us heard it because we weren't paying attention, it did nothing when we examined it a second later, and it hasn't done anything like that since."

"I see…" Dr. Hilo mused, "Unfortunate that such a phenomenon cannot be reliably verified, but quite intriguing if true…"

"So, Doctor," Danika said, "do you have any initial observations?"

The Inteleon studied the rock for a few more moments before turning to the other two and saying, "In my scientific opinion…I haven't the foggiest." He laughed and added, "This truly is unlike anything I have ever seen, but I am eager to study it further."

"You think your team will be a good fit for this task?"

"Oh, unquestionably! These are the sorts of unknown things Jiuji specializes in. We take the unknown and make it known!"

Danika smiled and nodded. "Hopefully that'll work out then. I'm dying to know what this is, but we just don't have enough resources here to get any answers."

"I will be certain to speak with your guildmaster later today and draw up the necessary contracts," Dr. Hilo said, "I am quite keen on starting to research this oddity."

"Sounds good," Danika replied, "She told me she'd contact me the moment she has some free time."

"Now then," Dr. Hilo continued, "Obviously I do not have clearance to take this with me back to the labs at this time, but would you mind if I remained here for a moment to observe it some more. Perhaps, take some notes?"

Sparks watched the two Pokémon converse excitedly for a few moments more. After a while, it became evident to him that he didn't have much more to contribute to the conversation. He eventually decided to politely excuse himself so that he could go back and make sure Ziggy was all right. Danika and the doctor both bid him farewell as he left.

Thankfully, Ziggy was doing okay once he had gotten back downstairs. The meeting with the Inteleon had shaken him a little, but not too badly.

* * *

It was a few hours later when Dante actually did arrive.

Sparks had found himself sitting on the couch in the common room, joined only by Terry and Rico who were sitting at the table talking. It was still an hour before dinner, and they were the only ones who had come back early. Once Dr. Hilo had finally left, Danika had whisked Ziggy away to do some more sorting for her.

Nobody had even announced his presence at the door this time. Sparks had simply heard the common room door open, followed by a familiar voice saying, "Hello? Anybody home?"

Sparks whipped his head around, saw who was at the door, and smiled brightly. "Dante!"

The visitor turned to regard him, and a warm, nostalgic smile graced his lips. "Sparky boy, as I live and breathe! What a pleasure to see you again, my friend!"

"Oh good heavens, it's been too long. Good to see you as well," Sparks said with a laugh.

The Lucario opened the door and fully stepped into the room. Dante looked as if he had stepped right out of one of his postcards. His blue eyes, unusual for a Lucario, were complimented by his inviting and friendly smile.

But his most striking features were what he was wearing. Tied around his neck was a short garment resembling a cape, though it only went down to just below his shoulders. It was tattered and torn in places, but still bore its strong colours. Around his neck was a necklace with a distinctly familiar design. And most noticeable of all, was the sheathed sword attached to the belt on his waist.

Dante strode over towards him, and Sparks stood up to meet him. They looked at each other as fond memories returned to Sparks' mind, and then they promptly embraced one another in a warm hug. Sparks was careful to avoid Dante's pesky chest spike as he did so.

"It has been an age, my old friend," Dante said.

"It's wonderful to see you. I've missed you."

The hug ended and both stepped back. Sparks looked up at Dante and couldn't help but smile. It had been at least a couple of years since he had seen Dante in the flesh. "What have you been up to?" Sparks asked him with a bit of a cheeky smile, "Saved any princesses from evil Dragonite?"

Dante crossed his forelimbs and said, "Excuse you. One of my best friends happens to be a Dragonite."

Both of them laughed at the joke. Sparks then leaned to the side to look behind Dante, noticing that Terry and Rico were both frozen in place as they stared at the Lucario. Rico, in particular, looked especially awed.

"Dante," he said, gesturing to the two younger Pokémon, "These are two of our newest recruits, Rico and Terry."

The Lucario turned around to regard them and gave them both his award-winning smile. "Hello, Rico. Hello, Terry. It is a pleasure to meet the both of you."

"Hello…" Terry mumbled softly.

Rico spoke a bit more directly. "Are you…really Dante? _The_ Dante?"

Dante chuckled softly and said, "Just 'Dante' is fine enough."

"Whoa…"

"Oh!" Sparks piped up, "That reminds me. Excuse me for a moment, I promised her…" He then tapped his badge, which lit up, and said, "Hey, Danika? He's here."

The Sneasel's voice immediately replied. "He is? Awesome! I'll be done in just a couple of minutes and we'll be down."

Dante glanced down at Sparks' badge. The same design was featured on his necklace. "Another new recruit?"

"No, she's been around for a fair bit. She's just never got the chance to meet you," Sparks explained. He then laughed once more and said, "It's strange…I feel 20 years younger when you're here. It feels just like old times…"

"It is good to be back within these walls," Dante said with a nod, "I do wish I could find the time to visit more often…"

"Ah, but then Pokémon wouldn't have as many tales of dashing, daring Dante to tell…"

"Sparks, please…"

"Oh, don't be so modest…"

Dante and Sparks spent a couple of minutes reminiscing and catching up with one another. Sparks took notice of a couple small scars that hadn't been on the Lucario before but, as usual, they only added to Dante's good looks.

When the door opened again soon after, Sparks turned around and expected to see Danika. Instead, he saw a nervous little face peering through.

"Hey buddy," he said, walking over and approaching Ziggy, "Where's Danika?"

Ziggy hesitated for a moment before looking up at him and saying, "She…had to do something…She'll be a minute…" His eyes then went right back to where he had been looking before; right at the newcomer in the room.

Dante had turned to look at him as well and had a surprised but still friendly look on his face. He silently waved while remaining where he stood.

"Ziggy," Sparks said, "This is my old friend Dante…"

Ziggy didn't reply. He didn't say a word. Sparks regarded him with interest, as the Buizel was wearing an expression he wasn't sure he had ever seen before. Ziggy's eyes were open wide and his mouth was hanging open just slightly. What struck Sparks was that there was very little fear to be seen in Ziggy's eyes. Perhaps even none at all. Ziggy remained frozen on the spot and unable to say anything, but it seemed like it wasn't because of his nerves.

"C'mon," Sparks chuckled, "I wanna go introduce you to him." He used his paw to gently open the door the rest of the way, nearly causing Ziggy to lose his balance. When the Buizel finally looked at him again, Sparks reached out to take his paw so he could lead him into the room.

Dante squatted down low to the ground as Sparks and Ziggy approached, so that he was more at eye level with the Buizel. "This is Ziggy," Sparks said, introducing him, "He's a good friend of mine and he's been staying with us at the guild for a couple months now. I've been working closely with him during that time."

"Hello, Ziggy," Dante said in the warmest, friendliest voice he could muster, "Pleasure to meet you as well."

"H…" Ziggy stammered. He still had that same look on his face. Sparks could see his eyes tracing across Dante's features, looking at his cape, his eyes, his scars, and especially his sword. "H…Hi…"

Dante chuckled. "A little shy, huh? That's just fine. I've met a lot of shy Pokémon, and they're usually the nicest and sweetest ones. And Sparks said you're friends with him? Well, any friend of Sparks is a friend of mine."

Ziggy's eyes got just a little wider. "F…Friend…?"

"Sure! You seem like a nice fellow."

Sparks looked at Ziggy, and saw that same frozen, almost awe-struck look in his eyes. He wondered if perhaps Ziggy had never seen a Lucario before. As a species they were relatively uncommon.

Before the interaction could go any further, though, everyone was alerted to the sound of the door opening again. Dante glanced upwards, and a big grin appeared on his muzzle when he saw who it was. "My, my, look who it is!" he said, "Guildmaster Carmen! What an honour!"

The Braixen seemed pleasantly surprised to see Dante and gave him a warm, welcoming smile. "Dante, my friend. So good to see you again."

Dante stood up and walked over to her. "You have certainly come a long way from the tiny little Fennekin we once knew."

"Dante, stop. It's nothing _that_ special…" She laughed softly and gave him a quick hug. "And please, just call me Carmen."

"Oh but it is _very_ special. Words cannot express how proud I am of what you have accomplished. It takes a special kind of Pokémon to become a guildmaster…"

Sparks watched Dante and Carmen start to catch up with one another, when he felt a paw poking him in the side.

"Um…Sparks…?" Ziggy whispered.

Sparks turned his attention down to the Buizel and said, "What's up?"

"Who…Who is that…?"

"That's Dante. He used to be a member of this guild a long while ago, back when he was just a Riolu. That was way back before Carmen was the guildmaster."

"How do _you_ know him?"

"He was part of the guild when I joined," Sparks explained, "We weren't guild partners, but we did spend a lot of time together and go on a lot of missions together. It was a time when both of us were just looking for a close friend."

"Yeah?"

"Mhm… He's had an…_interesting _past. He's not exactly like you and me. But anyway, he's since moved on to much bigger and better things, since he left the guild…"

"Like what…?" Ziggy asked.

"Well, Dante's a little famous. Most Pokémon known him better as 'Dante the Wanderer'…or, in some circles, 'Dashing Dante'. Although, he doesn't like that one, heh heh…"

Ziggy was glancing over at Dante again.

"He used to be a guildmember alongside me," Sparks explained, "But now he wanders the world, seeing the sights and making legends. He's accomplished things that we here at the guild could only dream of. He's taken down monstrous, gigantic foes, rescued Pokémon from certain death, and brought an end to turmoils. He's…a hero."

Dante and Carmen were laughing about something. At one point, Dante briefly glanced over and locked eyes with Ziggy, flashing him a quick, friendly smile. Ziggy actually perked up when he did. Sparks saw his tail lift off the ground, almost as if he were about to wag it.

"He's…He's got a…sword…!" Ziggy whispered.

"Yes, he does. Dante is an extremely skilled swordmaster. It is a very uncommon skill hardly practiced by anybody, but Dante took an interest of it from a very young age. With that sword, he's been able to fend off, and even fell, foes four times his size."

"G-goodness…" Ziggy murmured.

"You should see him _use_ it! It's like a magic show!"

Sparks then noticed that he and Ziggy had been joined by Terry and Rico. "Sparks…" Rico whispered, "That's…_really_ Dante? The one who climbed all the way to the top of Mt. Blizzard to rescue that whole group of stranded hikers?"

"Yup," Sparks said.

"Whoa…" Rico murmured, and Sparks could see stars in his eyes, "That's awesome! Dante's here in the guild! He looks so cool!"

"He's a celebrity!" Terry gushed, "There's a celebrity in the guild!"

"Ever since I was a little cub," Rico said, "I've always wanted to grow up to be just like him…"

"So cool…" Terry said.

"_So_ cool!" Rico concurred.

"Yeah…cool…"

All three heads turned to look at Ziggy, who promptly flushed in embarrassment and looked away.

"Seems like you like him," Sparks said with a chuckle, "You're usually a bit more skittish around strangers…"

Ziggy brought his paws up to his muzzle for a second to hide his embarrassed face. When he peeked between his paws a moment later and saw Sparks was still looking at him, he reluctantly dropped them. "K-kinda…" he murmured.

"Ah, I don't really blame you. Dante's very charismatic. It's why he's always fighting off admirers."

"I heard that," Dante said. Sparks hadn't noticed him finish talking to Carmen and walk over to them again. He took notice of the Eevee and Riolu standing next to Sparks, and leaned down to talk to them. "Well, well, I see the guild didn't wait very long to replace me," he said with a hearty laugh.

It took a moment for Rico to realize what Dante had meant. "Ah! Uh, I-I-I'm not trying to replace you, Dante."

"Calm down, I was just joking," Dante said, "In truth, it makes me happy to see that this guild is in good paws with another brave, young Riolu on the scene."

Rico's eyes practically glowed. If a light from the heavens had shone down on him in that moment, it would not have looked out of place. "I…Wow, um…T-thank you!"

"How old are you, son?" Dante asked him.

"I turned 18 this summer," Rico answered.

"Ah, interesting. I was 19 when I evolved, so it might be coming soon for you. But then again, don't worry if it doesn't. It's different for every Pokémon, but it'll happen soon."

Rico grinned. "I've always dreamed of what being a Lucario would be like. What's it like?"

"Taller?" Dante quipped, "Ha! What's different doesn't matter, as long as you're the same on the inside. If you're brave, strong and kind as a Riolu, then you'll be a brave, strong and kind Lucario." Dante then turned to look at Terry and asked, "And is this your guild partner?"

Before he answered, Rico reached over and pulled the Eevee into a side hug, causing Terry to yelp in surprise. "This is my boyfriend!" he announce proudly, which made Terry blush profusely.

"Oh! Oh, I see. I beg your pardon then," Dante said with a laugh.

Rico blinked a few times, and then said, "Oh, no, no. Yeah, he's my guild partner too. Heh…"

Terry, who looked caught halfway between hugging Rico back and sinking to the floor in embarrassment, tittered nervously and looked up at Dante. "Hello there, Mr. Dante. My name's Terry."

Dante grinned back at him. "Hello, Terry. I see you have good taste in boyfriends."

As Terry's entire face turned red, that tipped the scales and he started to wriggle out of Rico's grasp. Rico did relinquish him, but not before sneaking in a quick peck on the cheek.

"Ah, young love…" Dante mused as he stood back up and looked at Sparks again.

"Heh…" Sparks replied, "So, how long are you in town for?"

"Well, I'm afraid I can only stay here at the guild for today and tomorrow, as I have business elsewhere."

"Oh, that's all?" Sparks said, crestfallen.

"However, I will be back for a longer visit the week before Christmas, so you can look forward to that."

Sparks perked back up. "Oh, really? That sounds nice!"

"I have missed this place… These halls will always be my home, no matter where the winds take me."

"The 'winds' have taken you to some very interesting places, I have heard."

"Perhaps they have…" Dante said with a wink, "Perhaps there will be time later to tell some tales…"

* * *

"So, Sparks…"

The Raichu glanced up and saw that Dante had joined him on the couch. It was after dinner, so most everybody had dispersed. Everyone on the active team had been happy to either meet or catch up with Dante, and he had joined them for the meal.

"Yeah?"

"Tell me what's up with you and your little protégé."

"Ah, yeah. Ziggy…" Sparks sat up a little straighter and thought about how best to answer the question. Ziggy had left to help Liz clean up the dishes in the kitchen, so he wasn't around at the moment. Sparks started by telling Dante how he had found Ziggy, and the story of bringing him back to the guild. He shared all they had learned about Ziggy's past, as well as the sad tale of his life on the streets that had only recently ended.

"He's _extremely_ skittish and nervous…" Sparks said, "Pretty much everything makes him nervous. It took a lot of effort just to get him to be comfortable with me and the gang, here. He's constantly stressed out, and…the poor kid _never_ smiles."

"Really?" Dante said, eyebrows raised in interest, "I didn't really get that vibe from him…"

"Yeah," Sparks concurred, "He seemed to take a liking to you, for some reason. Introducing him to strangers is, like, almost impossible. He _freaks_ out at the idea of anybody seeing his fur colour."

Dante frowned and sighed. "Everything you've told me is really disheartening to hear."

"I'm trying, _really_ trying, to convince him that there really are Pokémon out there who don't care what colour his fur is. I'm…hoping you can be one of them."

"Oh, of course. Chromaphobia is simply ridiculous…" Dante shook his head. "I have encountered and befriended many shiny Pokémon on my travels."

"I was hoping maybe you and him could have a one on one chat sometime later?"

Dante smiled and said, "I would be happy to. Is there anything in particular you would like me to discuss with him?"

Sparks thought about the question for a moment. "Honestly…My goal right now is to try and get him out the door…"

"What?" Dante gave him a surprised look. "You don't want him here anymore?"

"No, no, no, no," Sparks said, quickly backtracking, "I mean, I want to get him _outside_. He's been a shut-in ever since a really, really bad incident in the marketplace. He hasn't set paw outside in a long while, besides the courtyard when it rains…"

"Hmm… I see…"

Sparks sighed and held his head. "Progress with him is so slow. I keep feeling like I'm not doing enough to help him, and it really gets to me sometimes…"

"Ah, my friend…" Dante reached over and draped a paw across Sparks' shoulders, "Life hit you hard. Much harder than other Pokémon realize… but here you are, fighting to make the world a better place one Pokémon at a time. I know you always do your best, and that will always be enough."

"The amount of faith you have in others is astounding…" Sparks commented.

"Same to you! I can tell that you see a bright future in that Buizel somewhere, and you're trying your damndest to get it out."

"Heh… I suppose…"

The two then looked up as they heard someone approaching. It was Rico and Terry again. "Um, excuse me, Dante?" Rico asked.

"Yes?"

"We…I mean, a couple of us at the guild were…We were kinda wondering if you could, y'know, tell us a story?" Rico looked up at the Lucario hopefully. "Maybe…one where you use your sword?"

"Aha!" Dante said as he let out a hearty laugh, "You wish to hear me regale you with tales of my adventures?"

"Yes, please!" Rico and Terry replied at the same time, both wearing eager smiles.

"Heh… I suppose so." He then stood up, and gestured to the couch where he had been sitting. "Have a seat, kiddos. Let me think, now… Which story to tell?"

* * *

Ziggy had finished helping Liz in the kitchen, and was making his way back to the common room. His eyes kept roaming the halls as he moved. He still didn't particularly feel comfortable when outside of the common room, besides Danika's room and the courtyard. It wasn't that he felt very scared, but he just preferred to be back in the common room.

The Buizel rounded a corner and made his way down a hallway. A Liepard passed by on his right, giving him a courteous nod as he went by. Ziggy nervously nodded back, getting over his brief spike of anxiety. He had surprised himself with his own ability to move about the halls without Sparks escorting him. Though, it had taken a long while to get to this point. Being by himself in the building still made him feel really nervous.

He sighed, feeling downtrodden. He knew that Sparks was disappointed in how spineless he was, even if the Raichu didn't say so in as many words.

Rounding the corner, Ziggy only had one more hallway to go before he would reach the grand staircase, and then the common room was just a hop away. He didn't know what he was going to do when he got there, or if Sparks had any other chores for him to do. He just wanted to _get_ there.

Finally, after a few more anxious seconds, Ziggy reached the door to the common room. He let out a slow breath, and then opened the door.

The sound of a familiar, somewhat deep voice reached his ears as soon as the door opened. The voice was in the middle of saying something about sheer cliffs and freezing temperatures. Ziggy looked over towards the source of the voice and saw something unexpected.

Almost the entire active team was sitting either on or around the big couch, and all of them were listening intently to Dante. The Lucario was standing before them, as if up on a stage, and was telling a story. Though Ziggy had walked in on the story halfway through, he could already tell it was a daring story of heroics, adventure and danger.

Ziggy stood there for a moment and simply listened to Dante speak. He was saying something about how he was traversing a glacier with deadly crevasses, using his sword like an ice pick to keep from slipping. There were apparently Pokémon trapped down deep in one of the crevasses, and he was trying to find them and rescue them.

The Lucario's bravery was on full display with the picture he painted with his words. Ziggy, once again, found himself drawn to this mysterious Pokémon. Who was he, really? Ziggy didn't know for certain; all he knew was that he got a good vibe off of Dante.

He was certainly impressive-looking. Most tall Pokémon intimidated Ziggy, but he didn't feel that way with Dante. His height seemed more impressive than domineering. Ziggy had never really seen a Lucario up close before, and he found that they were honestly a rather impressive-looking species. The spikes on his chest and paws gave him a little trepidation, but other than that Ziggy found that Dante looked very cool and impressive.

And the _sword_! Ziggy still couldn't keep his eyes from wandering to Dante's sword. He had never even imagined the possibility of a Pokémon using a sword before, and the idea was fascinating. He found himself filled with a hungry desire to see Dante using it. He wanted to see what sort of feats Dante could pull off with a blade like that.

Ziggy realized that he had started slowly walking without realizing it. Like a magnet, his paws were being drawn over to the couch where everyone else was. Before long, Ziggy was leaning against the armrest and looking up at Dante with the rest of the crowd.

He couldn't explain it. He truly couldn't explain why Dante, being a stranger, didn't set off alarm bells like other strangers did. He wouldn't go so far as to say he felt _completely_ at ease in the Lucario's company, but he didn't feel like he needed to run away from Dante. Maybe it was because it looked like Dante could protect him, or maybe it was just his smile.

Dante was talking now about an Abomasnow he encountered on the glacier, who was quite aggressive and territorial. He described the battle in great detail. Every word left Ziggy thirsty for more. He was immediately invested in Dante's incredible tale. The Lucario certainly had a way with words, as Ziggy could easily picture the adventures in his mind as if he had been there.

Who _was_ this Lucario? How could he be this amazing? Nobody could really be _this_ amazing, could they?

Ziggy glanced away briefly, catching Sparks' eye. The Raichu was giving him an approving grin. Sparks had apparently known Dante from long ago. The fact that they were still friends meant that Sparks probably trusted Dante a whole lot. Just how long had they known each other before they parted ways? They had been enrolled in the guild together.

He then glanced back at Dante, who was still telling his story. It was amazing the incredible things this Lucario had done, and this was but one of his stories. What _else_ had he done, especially to earn a reputation like he had?

* * *

The next day, Sparks was getting geared up for a walk in the town with Dante before he had to leave. It was unfortunate that Dante had to leave so soon after arriving, but Sparks was glad he would be back before the holidays. He would have to come up with a Christmas gift for him before that.

"All right, you ready?" Sparks asked as he exited the dorms and returned to the common room. He didn't receive an answer, and when he looked around he realized it was because Dante wasn't where Sparks had left him. "Dante?"

"He's out there!" Shay yapped, pointing a paw towards the other door that led to the main hall.

"Oh, okay. Thanks."

"Hey! You said Dante's coming back right? Right? Is he coming back soon?" Shay started to yammer on, his tail twitching back and forth like a lightning bolt.

"Yeah, buddy. He'll be back. Calm down."

"Awesome!" Shay exclaimed, the Yamper doing the opposite of calming down.

Sparks smirked and shook his head. Leaving the Yamper and his group of guildmates behind, Sparks made his way over to the opposite door. When he got there, he opened it and peeked his head through to see if Dante was out there.

"…just for an hour or two before I have to go somewhere else for a couple weeks," Dante could be heard saying.

Sparks turned to the side and saw something surprising. Dante was standing by the main front door of the guild, and he was leaning down on the ground so he could talk to none other than Ziggy.

"Oh…Okay," Ziggy said.

"Sorry if I'm stealing him from you…" Dante said with a chuckle.

"N-no, it's okay…" Ziggy mumbled, "I was just wondering."

"He'll be back soon."

"Um… What're you guys gonna do?"

"Probably just take a relaxing walk through the quieter spots in the city," Dante answered, "I've never been one for the hustle and bustle of city life, but even a city as big as this has some nice spots to see. We might walk along the cliffs, or through the forest to the south. I'll mostly let him lead."

"That…sounds nice," Ziggy said.

"He's told me a lot about you," Dante commented, "I know you've been through a lot of rough stuff."

"…Y-yeah…"

"But I know, from what he's told me, that you're trying. You're giving your best. That's what's important. As long as you never give up, miracles can happen."

Ziggy was silent for a moment. "You think so…?"

"Oh, I know so. Trust me. I've seen it happen before." Dante punctuated this with a wink and a grin.

Again, Ziggy was silent. He kept looking at Dante, and Sparks swore he could see a hint of cub-like wonder in his eyes. "Uhm…" Ziggy eventually said, "Are…Are you two going…to the market?"

"Heavens no," Dante said with a playful scoff, "I have never liked marketplaces. So crowded and noisy. I only go there when I must."

"Um…Okay…" Ziggy fidgeted for a moment, wringing his paws and subtly glancing towards the door occasionally. "U-um…M-Mr. Dante? Or, I-I'm sorry…Dante?"

"Yes?"

"…Could I…come with you?"

Sparks held a paw up to his mouth to stifle his gasp.

"You want to come with us on our walk?" Dante asked, "Well sure, if you want to. The more the merrier, after all."

"R-really? You're sure…?" Ziggy asked.

Dante chuckled softly and said, "Absolutely. And I'm sure Sparks would be glad to have you join us as well."

"Um…O-okay! Okay, cool. Uh… C-could you wait here for just a moment? I need to go get something out of my room."

"Of course," Dante said with a smile, "Take your time."

Ziggy then turned on the spot and started to run back towards the common room. He spotted Sparks as he approached, mildly startling him. "Oh! H-hi, Sparks!"

"Hey, bud…"

"Um…Dante said I could come with you guys on your walk. I, uh…I wanted to…I…" He fidgeted for a moment and eventually settled on simply saying, "I'm just gonna grab the hoodie, okay?"

Sparks looked down at him for a moment, then nodded and stood aside so Ziggy could go through the door. "Sounds good, Ziggy. We'll be waiting out here."

Ziggy nodded, and then ran through the door off towards his room.

In the meantime, Sparks leisurely walked over to where Dante was standing. "How the hell did you do that…?" he murmured.

Dante laughed out loud at that remark. "He likes me," he said with a shrug, "and he likes you as well. Maybe meeting someone else he likes as much as you just pushed him a little bit further…"

Sparks stood there for a moment, blinking occasionally as he was deep in thought. "Perhaps I have been coddling him too much…I just didn't want to push him too hard…"

"Oh stop. I know where this is going. You're going to start questioning yourself and every decision you've made. Don't, Sparky. Don't question why Ziggy's doing this now, at this moment, with this Pokémon. The important thing is that Ziggy is going outside. That's what you wanted, right?"

"True…"

"To tell you the truth," Dante said in a lower voice, "I think Ziggy is just developing a little touch of 'fanboy'. Things that fanboys are willing to do don't always make sense…but as long as the day goes okay today, I think Ziggy will be better off even when I'm not around."

Sparks paused for a moment and glanced up at his old friend, who smiled back at him. "Maybe you're right…" he commented, "I've been spending so much time trying to figure out exactly what I need to do to help Ziggy get better…Maybe at the end of the day, sometimes all we can do is hope…"

"Hope, and have faith," Dante added, "And…I have faith that things will be okay…"

"You do?"

"Mhm… Somehow, they always do… They always have, and they always do…"


	14. A Very Exciting Holiday

Chapter 14 \- **A Very Exciting Holiday  
**

It was a quiet day in the guild. A _very_ quiet day.

Winter had arrived as the year moved into its final month of December. It was the holiday season now, only a week and a half before Christmas. There was no snow outside, and it had not yet snowed in Radiant City at all, but this was expected. Usually Radiant City did not get snow until the new year. However, this didn't mean it was not a nice, brisk, wintery cold outside.

Sparks sat in the common room at the table, quietly sipping on a cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows. He had a blue and orange scarf wrapped tightly around his neck, as it was getting to that point where even the inside of the guild was nippy. He was all by himself in the room, aside from his constant companion Ziggy. The Buizel was busying himself with a broom and was tidying up the whole room.

It was so very quiet. The building felt empty. Most of the active team were out of town, visiting their friends and family for the holiday. As guild-work was so all-encompassing, and demand for the guild's services tended to skyrocket in the seven days before and after Christmas, active team members were encouraged to take their holiday vacations either early or late.

Almost everyone currently enrolled in the guild preferred to leave early, as many Pokémon families did not mind celebrating the occasion ahead of time. It just meant presents and merriment early, after all.

On this particular day, not many Pokémon were around besides Sparks and his Buizel buddy. Sparks didn't have anywhere to go for a holiday, so he always elected to stay behind for the whole month. The guild was his home, after all. He didn't mind, though. He had already picked out everybody's presents for the guild's present-exchange, which took place on December 30th. _That_ was the time he spent with his 'family'. And, of course, Ziggy had nowhere to go either.

Ziggy had been making strides in the past couple weeks. Ever since Dante had first visited and convinced him to set paw outside the guild, Ziggy had been agreeing to take occasional walks through the quieter parts of town. He still insisted on wearing that hoodie every single time, but Sparks could see that he was gradually becoming more comfortable with the outdoors in general. Unfortunately, Ziggy still shied away from large crowds and was constantly nervous about others seeing what was hidden under his hood.

Dante's second visit had been a treat, especially for the young Buizel. Ziggy got more excited and upbeat than Sparks had ever seen him before. A couple of times, he very nearly smiled. Dante had stayed for another six days in early December, during time many of his epic tales were told, and a fantastic demonstration of his swordsplay skills was put on. That had certainly been the highlight.

Now, though, things were quiet. The large, empty common room was filled only with the repetitive _swish swish swish_ sound of Ziggy's broom. Shay had just left to go see his family yesterday, and Jules would be back in two days. Sparks, Carmen and Ziggy were the only ones who would be there for the whole holiday season.

Unfortunately, the serene peace did not last much longer. The door to the grand hall slammed open suddenly, startling Sparks and causing Ziggy to loudly yelp. Carmen ran through the doorway, clearly under pressure and trying to remain calm. She looked around for a moment before locking eyes with him.

"Sparks!" she said, running up to him.

"Carmen, what's wrong?" he asked concernedly.

"There's trouble, Sparks. The guild is being called into action. Urgent and immediate action!"

Sparks' eyes went wide. He carefully put down his mug of hot chocolate and sat up straighter. "What's happened?" he asked in a much more serious tone.

"About two hours ago, approximately 10 o'clock, a Nidoran and her mother were taking a walk through the forests to the southeast of the city, about 25 minutes out. The Nidoran slipped and fell down a hole into an underground cave, where she is now trapped. The mother, a Nidoqueen, was too large to fit down the hole, and when she called out for her daughter, there was no response."

"Oh no…" Sparks immediately felt his blood run cold.

"The guild is being called upon to mount a rescue expedition of urgent priority, but of course the timing could not be worse." Carmen held a paw to her forehead and groaned. "We are _severely_ understaffed right now due to overlapping vacations."

Sparks lifted his head for a moment in thought, and realized with dread just how right Carmen was. Though the guild tried to avoid scheduling vacations at the same times, there was only so much that could be done. Some vacations had started a few days ago, while some would end in a few days, but at this exact day there were a _lot_ of Pokémon out of the guild.

"I'll go," Sparks announced, "That is, if I can fit?"

"First responders measured the hole," Carmen replied, "You will _just_ barely fit, Sparks, but we can't send anyone larger than you. That means _I'm_ out of the question, and I can't go anyway because I need to remain here for guildmaster duties and nobody can cover for me."

"But who else…? Jules is gone, Shay is gone, Lupe and Javier are both gone, Akash is on an overnight mission for a client in another town… Tora and Liz won't fit… What about Danika? Isn't she coming back today?"

Carmen shook her head. "She won't be in until dinnertime, and by then it will be too late in the day to mount an expedition. I don't fancy the idea of leaving a cub alone in a dark cave overnight."

"No, me neither…" Sparks said in agreement, "And Kandice can't go to a mission that far with nobody to cover her medical office."

"I've already contacted Rico," Carmen said, "He was out on a job, but thankfully the client agreed to relinquish him and so he's on his way here right now."

"What about Kona?"

"He was next on my list. Do you know where he is?"

"Who, me?"

Sparks and Carmen both turned to see the Dewott in question exiting the dorms with a confused look on his face. "Kona! Good!" Carmen proclaimed, "We've got an emergency. Are you free?"

"I was doing work in my dorm. What's going on?"

Carmen succinctly explained the situation to Kona, who immediately agreed to join the rescue operation.

"Okay! Well, that's three," Sparks said, "That's enough isn't it?"

"No…" Carmen groaned, rubbing her temples, "There's something else, Sparks."

"What?"

"This cave that the cub fell into? It's an undiscovered MD."

Sparks and Kona both gasped. "An MD?" Sparks spat in disbelief, "There's an MD in the southeast forest?"

"There is."

"No way…" Sparks murmured. An _undiscovered_ MD? There hadn't been a new Mystery Dungeon discovered in a long, long time, and discovering new ones was extremely rare. After all, it was thought that close to 99% of all Mystery Dungeons in the world had been discovered already.

"You know guild safety protocols," Carmen said, "A three-Pokémon team isn't enough."

"Right…" Sparks put his paw to his chin in thought. Mystery Dungeons could be extremely dangerous, so it was against Rescue Society protocol to venture into a Mystery Dungeon without at least four Pokémon on the team; three to venture inside, and one to remain near the entrance. The latter's job was to monitor communications, ensure the entrance remained open and unobstructed, coordinate on-the-spot maps, and a variety of other tasks.

"The Nidoran cub fell into a Mystery Dungeon?" Kona asked, "That probably explains why there was no response. She probably got frightened, wandered off, and the Mystery Dungeon twisted itself and she ended up far away from the entrance."

"I've already arranged for transportation," Carmen said, "and I'll help with preparations before you depart, but if we can't figure out a fourth team member soon, then we're in trouble…"

"Of all the poor timing…" Sparks groaned, "And there's really nobody else around who can pitch in?"

"Not on such short notice…"

The group was then alerted to the sound of the guild hall's front doors being tossed open accompanied by heavy panting, easily heard as Carmen had left the common room door open. A somewhat out-of-breath Rico soon joined them. "Hey!" he said between breaths, "I'm here…!"

"Thanks for hurrying," Carmen said to him, "Is Terry still out of commission?"

Rico frowned and nodded. "He's still got the flu really bad. I don't think he'll be getting out of bed much today."

"Good grief…" Carmen groaned. She then filled Rico in on all the details, including their lack of a fourth party member. A discussion broke out between the two of them and Kona as to possible solutions, what could be done if a solution couldn't be found, if an exception could be made for a three-Pokémon team, and other such frustrations.

Sparks, unfortunately, couldn't come up with much to say. It was a conundrum and he didn't have any particularly bright ideas. He was absolutely no stranger to exploring Mystery Dungeons. Neither was Kona, and Rico had briefly explored his first last month with Terry, supervised by Sparks himself. Of the group, Sparks was the only one who had ever actually been on a _rescue_ mission inside of one before.

As their discussions continued, Sparks ended up glancing off to the side. That's when he noticed that Ziggy was looking at them intently. He had stopped sweeping entirely and was watching the proceedings with a keen interest. Ziggy had obviously heard what was going on, because there was a look of definite concern in his eyes. When he saw Sparks looking at him, he started slightly. He flushed in embarrassment as if only then realizing that he had stopped sweeping, and quickly got back to his chore.

"…Hey, Carmen?" Sparks spoke up.

"Hm? What is it?"

Sparks observed the Buizel for a few more seconds before slowly turning towards Carmen. "…What about Ziggy?"

"What?" Carmen replied in confusion.

"_What?_" a younger voice from off to the side said at the exact same time.

Sparks nodded as the idea formulated in his mind. "What if we brought Ziggy along?"

Carmen gave him an impatient look and said, "Sparks what are you talking about?"

Instead of answering right away, Sparks looked over at Ziggy once more. The Buizel had again stopped sweeping, though this time it was because his broom had clattered to the ground. Ziggy's eyes were filled with confusion as he looked at Sparks with his jaw slightly askew. "C'mere, buddy. Come talk to us," Sparks said to him.

Ziggy looked around in confusion for a moment and then started to slowly walk over to them. As he did, Carmen spoke up again. "Sparks, this isn't a time for jokes…"

"I'm not joking," he replied firmly. Once Ziggy was standing next to him, he looked down and said, "I noticed that you took an interest in our discussion."

"Um…S-sorry…" he murmured.

"No, it's perfectly all right. We don't mind at all. Though, may I ask, why did we capture your attention so?"

Ziggy cast a couple of nervous glances at the other Pokémon before answering Sparks. "You said…a cub fell down a cave and she needs help. R-right? I just- I was just…" He gulped and then said in a slightly louder voice, "You're gonna save her, right?"

Sparks reached down and put a paw on his shoulder. "We're going to do our best, but we need a bit more help. Do you think you'd be able to help us rescue her?"

"M-me?"

"Sparks…" Carmen interjected, "Are you seriously proposing this? Ziggy is not an alumnus. He's not a guild member. He absolutely cannot join you on a _Mystery Dungeon_ rescue expedition."

"He doesn't have to come _in_ the dungeon," Sparks said, turning to look at her once more, "The three of us are going in, and he can stay up top. We do need a fourth team member, but the above-ground position is the least dangerous and least difficult job to do."

Carmen glanced at Ziggy for a moment before looking back at Sparks again. "Sparks, there's no way-"

"If we had the rest of our team here I wouldn't suggest it at all, but we're understaffed and a cub is in trouble," Sparks said, firmly cutting her off, "We have temporary-use badges so Ziggy can communicate with us and with the guild, and his main job will be to make sure that if we get stuck down there then somebody will know about it. The above-ground team member's job isn't to leap in at the first sign of danger, Carmen. If the cave collapses or something, it'll be Ziggy's job to call for help. I'm _sure_ he'll be able to do that."

"Sparks…" Carmen said in a testy tone.

He instead turned to look at Ziggy once more, who had an unsure look on his face. "You wanna help, don't ya buddy? I can tell. I know you want to help."

Ziggy opened his mouth to reply, but it was a few moments before he found his word. "I-I…I mean, i-if I can…" He then frowned and simply said, "She's…just a little cub, right? I don't want her to…t-to…"

Sparks shook his head. "She won't. We're going to help her. Kona and I are well-experienced, Rico's strong and brave enough to make up for his lack of experience, and with you up top we'll make sure nothing bad happens."

"Really…?"

"Mhm," Sparks said with a nod, "It's out in the forest, so there'll be nobody around to bother you. You can even bring your hoodie if you want."

"Sparks, stop!" Carmen interrupted, "Stop this. We just can't send _Ziggy_ of all Pokémon on a mission like this. He's not qualified. He has no training. If I let you do this and anybody found out about it-"

"Carmen, there's a cub stuck in a Mystery Dungeon right now," Sparks said determinedly, "She's scared, hungry and possibly hurt. With everybody gone for vacation, this is the best option we have to rescue her before night falls." He looked over at Kona and Rico and added, "You guys don't have a problem with my idea, right?"

Kona shook his head and Rico said, "It sounds all right to me. Especially if you're comin' down with us, Sparks."

"And you, Ziggy?" Sparks continued, "Sound like something you can handle? You'll be talking to us, drawing a map, and calling for help if we need it."

Ziggy looked nervous, though that was pretty much expected of him, but he did nod after a few moments. "I think so… I-if it'll help save her…"

"So, ma'am?" Sparks said, turning to address Carmen once more, "Sound acceptable? The sooner you give us clearance, the sooner we can head out and save her."

Carmen seemed slightly taken aback by Sparks' perseverant tone and was quiet for a moment. She slowly looked at each of the other Pokémon, one by one, and spent a few seconds lingering on Ziggy. Sparks could see the gears turning in her head, but he also knew that her patience was wearing thin.

When Carmen then glanced up at the clock, seeing that it was already past noon, that seemed to seal the deal. "All right…Fine…" she said in exasperation. She then immediately leaned in close to Ziggy and asked, "Are you sure you're up to the task?"

Ziggy jumped back slightly. At first, to Sparks' worry, it looked like he was having second thoughts. But, Ziggy glanced up at him for a second and he gave him a look of support. Ziggy then looked back at Carmen, gulped once, and then nodded firmly. "…I want to help her," he said.

Carmen's expression softened for a brief second, and then she curtly nodded and stood up straight. "Right," she said, looking at Sparks, "Your team of four is approved. Get prepared and inform me when ready. I will give you directions, as well as the temp communication badge for Ziggy. I'll have further information from you over comms after you leave."

Sparks grinned eagerly and saluted her. "Yes, guildmaster!"

To his surprise, Carmen then grabbed the wooden stick out of her tail and thrust it right up under Sparks' nose, not touching him but causing him to flinch. She gave him a very stern look, like a disciplining teacher to a cub. "Sparks," she said in a firm tone, "Under _no_ circumstances is Ziggy to set paw inside of that cave. Not a single paw. He is to remain above-ground at _all_ times. Understand?"

"Absolutely," Sparks said, "Of course. Wouldn't dream of it."

Carmen remained still for a moment, fiercely staring at Sparks and continuing to point her stick at him, until finally she pulled it away and stuck it back into her tail. "Very well. Move out, team! Let's go, let's go, let's go!"

"Yes, Guildmaster!" chanted Sparks, Rico and Kona in perfect unison.

"Ah! Um, y-yes, Guildmaster!" Ziggy hastily added a second later.

* * *

It was a cloudy, chilly day out in Radiant City. The fact that Sparks and his team were riding in the back of a very fast-moving wagon only made things even chillier.

The intrepid team of four were en route to the location of the Mystery Dungeon where the Nidoran cub was trapped. They were riding on the back of a small, non-covered wagon that was being pulled along the streets by a very swift Rapidash. There were many Pokémon who earned a living pulling wagons for transport, but Rapidash were expensive because of just how fast they could run.

Sparks was still wearing his scarf and he was quite thankful for it. The air had gotten quite frigid upon the onset of the afternoon. He glanced over at Kona, who had on a smaller scarf that matched the blue of his fur. Next to him was Rico, who wasn't wearing anything extra at all. Sparks had no idea how he endured cold like this without any winter clothing.

Finally, sitting nestled right up next to him, was Ziggy. The Buizel was wearing his now-familiar black hoodie, with the hood pulled up all the way to cover his head and face, and was nestling himself up as close to Sparks as he could.

Ziggy wasn't exactly enjoying the wagon ride. He had been quite intimidated by the sight of the large, powerful Rapidash that had met the team at the guild's front gate. He had helped the others load supplies onto the back of the wagon, but had been self-consciously adjusting his hoodie the entire time to make sure the Rapidash couldn't see him. Now that they were on the move, the wildly whipping winds kept threatening to blow the hood off of his head, which is why he had huddled himself next to Sparks.

All in all, though, Sparks was still hopeful that this would work out. They were leaving town to reach this dungeon, where there were no other Pokémon around, and Ziggy still seemed ready and willing to lend a paw. His concern for the wellbeing of the Nidoran was genuine and quite touching.

The cub's name was Zuri and she was only six years old. Her mother, a Nidoqueen named Asha, was waiting at a police outpost outside of the forest. Due to the presence of an undiscovered MD, the area was being temporarily cordoned off with only guildmembers allowed to access it.

The wagon was already starting to leave the city behind, as it turned down some smaller, more remote roads and pathways that led towards the forest. It wouldn't be much longer until they would be forced to leave the wagon behind and continue on paw.

"Doin' okay, buddy?" he asked to Ziggy, giving him a gentle nudge.

"It's cold out…" he mumbled.

"Heh… I know. Winter's here and it's making itself known."

After a moment's pause, Ziggy lifted his head a tad. Sparks could just barely see the outline of his face hidden within the hoodie's shadow. "Are…you guys gonna be okay down there…?"

"Oh, sure," Sparks said reassuringly, "MD's _can_ be dangerous, but we're probably not going very deep inside. I can't imagine the cub has gone too far within. It's just when you have to go really deep into the dungeon that things get risky."

Ziggy nodded. "Okay…"

"You still feel up for helping us out…right?" Sparks asked, unable to keep a little trepidation from his voice. Though he wanted to support Ziggy and not force him to do something he didn't want to, the fact was that if Ziggy bailed, they all had to bail.

Thankfully, Ziggy said, "Yeah…I'm just nervous…"

"It'll be fine. You'll be all by yourself in the forest. No-one will bother you. And, you can speak to us the whole time through that badge we've got. Besides, you won't have time to be nervous because you'll be distracted by the map you're making!"

A moment of silence passed. The wagon continued down an old dirt road, with the forest slowly approaching in the distance. The sounds of the city faded away, replaced by only the clopping sound of the Rapidash's hooves.

"I hope she's okay…" Ziggy murmured.

"I do too," Sparks said, "I'm sure she's fine. She's just stuck and needs our help."

"Carmen seemed angry…"

"Oh, she's just worried about protocols and stuff. You'll do fine, and then she'll be super proud of you."

"…You think so?"

"Absolutely. I'm already proud of you, Ziggy. We all are! This is very brave what you're doing right now!"

* * *

"This spot should do," Sparks proclaimed.

"Is it close enough?" Kona asked.

"Sure. You can see the entrance over there. See the flagging tape? They marked it off."

Sparks pointed off to the side, where a few strips of pink ribbons could be seen attached to some trees growing near a small, rocky escarpment. First responders had left it there to mark the entrance to the Mystery Dungeon.

"Okay, Zig. Just put that stuff down on the ground and we'll get the table set up," Sparks said, turning back to look at the Buizel. Ziggy had been tasked with carrying some of the team's equipment from the spot where the Rapidash's wagon had dropped them off. There were no paths into the forest from the point where the road ended, but the forest was fairly sparse and not too difficult to traverse. The ground was a little wet from recent rainfalls, but luckily it wasn't raining at the moment.

Ziggy grunted as he dropped both the backpack he was wearing and the rolls of parchment and cases of mapping tools he was carrying. Kona walked over to where he was and removed his backpack as well, while Rico joined them and started to set up the collapsible table he had been carrying. The task of carrying everything had been a bit strenuous for Ziggy, so he had taken off his hoodie and tied it around one of the straps of the backpack. He had been hesitant to take it off until he was sure the Rapidash had left and was out of eyesight.

The group was truly alone out in the forest, though. The sounds of civilization had faded entirely, and Sparks was all but positive that nobody else was in this forest besides themselves and the trapped Nidoran. Ziggy would be safe to work away from prying eyes.

Sparks also walked over to help the group set things up on the table. It was now the afternoon, so Sparks knew they were working with a time limit. Being inside of a Mystery Dungeon after sunset was a recipe for trouble. It had been a long while since he had last conducted a rescue operation inside of a Mystery Dungeon, but he found himself getting into the swing of things as if it were second nature to him. It was like riding a bike; it never truly left him.

As the group began to set out the mapping tools, prepared the backup and emergency equipment, and ran tests on Ziggy's temporary communication badge, Sparks idly glanced over at the flagging tape. He couldn't see the entrance itself from where they were set up, but he knew it was basically a hole in the ground that led into a cave. He marveled at the fact that an MD had remained out here, undiscovered, to this date, and so close to the city.

"So, Ziggy?" Kona spoke up once everything was set up on the table, "Here's a quill. Here's the grid you're gonna be working with. We're gonna give you directions, like left turn or right turn, and you just mark it out here like this. Okay?"

The Buizel was watching Kona's example and nodding. It was remarkable to see how Ziggy's demeanour had changed once they had left the city. Perhaps it was partly because he was focused on the seriousness of the situation, but that in itself was certainly commendable. The moment back at the guild that he had noticed Ziggy listening to every single word they had been saying about this rescue operation was all the convincing Sparks had needed. He knew that Ziggy would be ready, willing and able to help out if he possibly could.

"And…I'll be able to talk to you guys the whole time with this?" Ziggy asked, holding up a plain grey badge. This was the spare communications-only badge that the guild used in emergencies and special cases like this.

"Yup. You can talk to us, no matter how deep underground we go."

Ziggy nodded. "Okay."

"Tap it twice to contact the guild. Tap it three times for the police."

Once they were sure Ziggy understood his duties, Sparks then addressed the group. "All right, everybody ready to get started?" When everybody nodded, he went on to say, "First things first, since this is a new MD, we gotta go set up the telemetry stuff over there. The stuff in Rico's backpack. There's four modules in there, so let's each carry one."

"Where? To the cave?" Ziggy asked.

"Yeah, just outside the cave. It'll help gather information for the MD database, and there's also some proximity detectors there to detect when citizens get too close. Stuff like that."

Ziggy went over to the backpack that Rico had worn while hiking in and opened the zipper. Inside were four sleek, metallic modules of varying oblong sizes and shapes. Ziggy reached in and picked one out, leaving the largest one for Sparks and the two smaller ones for the other two. Sparks saw the Buizel grunt and struggle with its weight briefly before finding his sense of balance.

When everyone was holding one of the modules, the group left the backpack and the rest of their equipment behind and started to make their way over to the dungeon's entrance. They had set themselves up about 50 metres away from the entrance, though this was simply due to the uneven ground near the entrance. The spot they had picked to set things up was relatively flatter.

Once the telemetry stuff was set up, and after Sparks and the others had visually inspected the dungeon's entrance, they would all head back to the table to gear up for the expedition. Ziggy would stay behind, and the other three would begin their descent into the cavern. Sparks could feel waves of nostalgia simply from approaching those few pieces of flagging tape on the nearby trees.

Sparks was in the lead, effortlessly carrying the largest of the modules due to his size and strength. Kona and Rico were in step behind him, with Rico looking particularly eager. "You okay back there?" Sparks called over his shoulder as he noticed Ziggy lagging behind a bit.

"I'm fine," he replied in a slightly strained voice, "It's just…weird to carry."

"You're doing great!" Kona called back in encouragement.

"Kona, you packed food, right?" Rico asked.

"I packed plenty of apples. Don't you worry. They're back in my backpack."

"This is a rescue operation, not a buffet," Sparks said teasingly.

The terrain between the table and the entrance wasn't the smoothest to traverse. It was bumpy and uneven, and the recent rains made the ground feel squishy and muddy. Sparks was glad they had set the table up back there instead of right at the entrance. The relatively short walking distance was a small price to pay.

"Uh…G-guys?"

Sparks stopped walking and turned around. "What's up, Ziggy?"

The Buizel had stopped in his tracks a good six or seven metres behind the other Pokémon, and was looking at them with a confused, nervous expression.

"Ziggy?" Sparks spoke in concern, putting down his heavy module on the ground next to him, "What's wrong?"

"The…Th-the ground…"

"What?" Sparks replied in confusion, stepping towards the Buizel.

"The ground!" he yelped, "The ground is-!"

"What about the ground?"

"It's _sinking_!"

A moment later, Sparks watched in shock as Ziggy inexplicably _sunk_ a few inches down, along with the ground all around him. For a brief moment, Sparks just stood there in bafflement. A few seconds later, he gasped when he realized what was happening.

"Ziggy!" he shouted in alarm, scrambling to get over to the Buizel as quickly as he could.

"Sparks? What's-Wah!" The ground under Ziggy suddenly shifted again, causing him to lose his balance and fall back onto his rump. The module fell from his paws next to him.

Sparks was only a few inches away and tried to leap forward so he could grab onto the Buizel. He reached out his paw towards Ziggy. "Grab on!" he shouted to the frightened Buizel.

Ziggy gasped in fright and started to lift his paw up towards Sparks. However, that was all he could manage to do before the ground literally swallowed both him and the module whole.

"Ugh!" Sparks exclaimed in pain as he landed with a thud. To his dismay, he felt the ground shift beneath him. He barely had time to lift his head before he felt things beneath him moving in ways they definitely should not.

"Sparks!" Kona shouted.

"Look out!" Rico shouted as well.

Sparks tried to stand back up, and looked over to see the Dewott and Riolu had also dropped their modules and were racing towards him. There was suddenly a deep, crumbling sound from below. "Get back!" Sparks shouted, "Stay back!"

Kona and Rico didn't even have time to apply the brakes. By the time the words were out of Sparks' mouth, the ground beneath him suddenly caved inwards. The last thing Sparks saw was Kona and Rico tumbling forward, unable to hold their balance, and falling down after him. Darkness clouded his vision just moments before the onslaught of pain commenced.

* * *

Sparks groaned. His whole body ached. His head felt like there was a nail right through the middle of it. He could feel a dampness on his forehead. It might have been water, but Sparks knew it was probably blood.

The ground he was laying on was rugged and quite uncomfortable. He tried to sit up, but this only made him groan louder. He was fairly certain that nothing was broken, but it sure _felt_ like something was. His bones ached, his muscles ached, and his head was just _throbbing_. He tried to take in a deep breath but just ended up hoarsely coughing.

Sparks remained there for a couple minutes, halfway in the process of sitting up, before the unbearable pain in his head finally started to subside. He managed to wrench his eyes open, only to be met with pitch blackness. It was as if he'd gone blind, and he briefly panicked thinking this was the case. After Sparks finally managed to properly get himself into a sitting position, he reached down and tapped his badge.

Big mistake. The sudden appearance of the bright light assaulted his eyes and brought back the throbbing in his head with a vengeance. The Raichu forced himself to suffer through a few more moments of pain before his eyes adjusted to the light.

What he saw was pretty much what he expected to see. He was inside of the Mystery Dungeon. Rugged featureless walls encompassed a small, unremarkable room, all of which was composed of dirt and rocks. The air felt dry and stale, and the only thing he could hear was his own ragged breathing.

Sparks looked up, tilting the light of his badge up towards the craggy roof. Just off to the side, he saw an opening in the ceiling. He surmised that the sinkhole had dumped them into a vertical shaft and they had slid down it like a waterslide to end up here. Or, alternatively, the phenomenon of the Mystery Dungeon had already shifted the rooms around them and taken them away from where the roof had caved in, and the passage he was looking at now likely led to nowhere. This was perhaps the more likely explanation, since no light was filtering in from the hole whatsoever.

"Ugh…" Sparks groaned, holding a paw to his head to quell his headache. It had certainly been a bumpy ride on the way in. "You guys okay?" he called out, "You here with me?"

Sparks started to turn around, sweeping his light across the room to look for his companions. It didn't take long to find one of the blue-coloured Pokémon lying nearby. Kona was just in the process of sitting up. "Sparks…?" he groaned.

"Yeah, I'm here," Sparks replied as he approached the Dewott, "You all right?"

"Ow…I think so… I think it's just bruises…"

"Looks like you just got a few nicks and scrapes. You should be all right."

Kona looked up and squinted under the glare of Sparks' light. The Raichu stepped back and allowed Kona to turn on his own badge's light. "You're bleeding, Sparks…" he said once he could see.

Sparks reached up and touched the damp spot on his forehead. It stung a little, but he didn't feel anything too grisly.

"Well _that_ sucked…" a third voice chimed in.

Both Sparks and Kona turned in the direction of the voice to see Rico lying face down on the floor. A moment later, he used his forepaws to push himself up into a sitting position. "You okay, Rico?" Sparks asked him.

"Yeah, I'm good," he said almost nonchalantly. Sparks noticed that the Riolu didn't seem all that worse for wear, and attributed it to him being a Fighting-Type. "What the hell happened?" he asked.

"Sinkhole…" Sparks murmured, "Recent rains probably made the ground weak above an open cave, which was also part of the Mystery Dungeon, and it caved in when Ziggy walked over it with the big heavy-" Before he could finish his sentence, however, he suddenly gasped. "Ziggy!"

Sparks started looking around for the Buizel. He had been the first to fall into the sinkhole, so Sparks could only hope he'd ended up in the same place as them. "Ziggy?" he called out, "Ziggy are you here?"

Kona and Rico stood up and started searching as well. The room was fairly large and was littered with rocks and boulders.

A moment later, to Sparks' relief, a very faint groaning could be heard. Sparks immediately rushed over to the sound of the noise, and found Ziggy lying in the corner of the room behind a rock in a crumpled heap.

"Ziggy!" he exclaimed as he immediately got down on all fours, "Ziggy, are you okay?" Sparks examined the Buizel's body and silently winced when he saw the splotches of blood dotting his golden fur. He had gotten banged up in the fall, but thankfully his wounds looked small as well. Sparks' head wound seemed to be the worst of the bunch.

"…Sparks?" Ziggy murmured as he lifted his head and looked up, immediately wincing under the bright light.

"Yeah, it's me buddy. I'm here. C'mon, sit up. Does anything really hurt?"

Sparks knelt down and tried to help Ziggy up off the ground. The Buizel groaned as he did so, but didn't seem too badly hurt. Sparks sighed in relief and had to commend Ziggy's tenacity. He had seen it before when Ziggy had cut himself with the knife at the dinner table.

"Are you okay, Zig?" Sparks asked for the third time, "Nothing broken?"

Ziggy, now fully sitting up, held up a paw to try and block some of the light from Sparks' badge. "I…think I'm okay…"

"Good…That's good…" Sparks then stepped back and turned away so that his badge light wasn't pointing directly at Ziggy. Kona and Rico also sat nearby, the trio using their badges to light up as much of the room as they could without blinding anybody else.

"Sparks…?" Ziggy murmured. He still seemed a little disoriented, and he was squinting through the light towards the Raichu. After a moment of silence, he gasped. "Y-you're bleeding…"

"I know, bud. Don't worry, it's not that bad. I just took a bump on the head."

"S-S-Sparks…" Ziggy murmured worriedly.

"It's okay, Ziggy. Try to relax. We all lost a bit of blood on the way in here, but we're all fine."

Ziggy then started to look at his surroundings, and the fear in his eyes grew. "Sparks…" he whimpered softly, "We're…w-we're in…in the…"

"Yeah, we're in the Mystery Dungeon…" Sparks bemoaned, "Wasn't really how I was planning to get us in here, but…"

Ziggy then looked back at Sparks with a terrified expression. "B-but…" he said, "I'm not supposed to be in here…" He took in a shuddering breath and said, "I-I'm not supposed to be in here! I-I wasn't supposed to come down here! Carmen said-"

"Buddy, buddy, calm down," Sparks interrupted, holding up his paws, "It's okay, Ziggy. It was an accident. You didn't come in here on purpose."

"I…I'm…" Ziggy audibly gulped and started to nervously look at his surroundings again. "Oh gosh…Oh my gosh…"

"Ziggy, we're here with you," Kona said, "You'll be fine if you stay close to us, okay? Don't worry."

"Yeah," Rico agreed, "And you're not gonna get in trouble for accidentally falling down a hole in the ground. If anything, you just became a rescuee now instead."

The nervous Buizel was still surveying his surroundings with a cautious eye. "I…O-okay…" he said, though without much conviction in his voice.

"All right…" Sparks said with a sigh, addressing the other two rescuers, "Needless to say…Change of plans. That was unfortunate, but we'll be fine. I doubt we've ended up very deep in the dungeon. We're probably still on the top floor, so the exit can't be too far from here; the one the Nidoran fell into in the first place. Our first priority is to find that exit, and from there we can make better plans."

"We don't have any of our equipment," Kona observed, "It's all back at the table. We're going into this without supplies."

"I've still got my backpack," Sparks said, taking it off of his back and placing it on the ground where it could be seen in the light. "It doesn't have a whole lot in it, but it's better than nothing."

"So we'll get out, grab our stuff, and jump back in to look for the Nidoran?" Rico asked.

"Correct," Sparks said with a nod. He then looked around at the others. They were seated in such a way that their combined lights lit up the room around them as much as possible. "It's a pretty dark dungeon," he observed, "So it's a good thing we still have our badges. We'll need to…Oh." Sparks paused when his gaze passed by Ziggy, and he saw the Buizel sitting in the shadows still squinting his eyes. "Oh right, you don't have a badge…"

"I…left the temporary one up top," he said.

"No, that's fine. That one doesn't have a light anyway. It's strictly for comms." He considered the issue for a moment. "Oh! Wait, hold on a second…" he said as an idea came to him. He reached in and started rummaging through his backpack. "I should have one in here somewhere…" he murmured, checking all of the little pockets for what he needed.

"Aha! Here we go!" he proclaimed. He pulled out what he was looking for. Then, he walked over and gave it to Ziggy, who took it gingerly in his paws. He fumbled with it for a moment before he found the button on the side, causing the flashlight to suddenly illuminate and nearly blind him.

"Ack!"

Sparks nodded. "I always keep one of those, just in case."

Ziggy held the flashlight in both of his paws and used it to sweep around the room and look at the other three Pokémon. "T-thanks, Sparks…"

"All right…Anything else?" Sparks asked, "I've got basic first aid in here too. Anybody need a bandage?"

"Uh, I think _you_ could use a bandage, Sparks…" Kona remarked.

Sparks reached up to the wound on his head again, and noted that his paw still felt damp afterwards. "Yeah… Maybe you're right… Okay, but we head out once I'm patched up, all right? This is a setback, but we'll be fine. You too, Ziggy. You'll be fine, all right?"

Ziggy gulped again, but nodded. "O-okay…"

As Sparks fished out the bandages from his backpack, he glanced over at Ziggy again and sighed softly when he saw how scared the Buizel looked. He was already starting to kick himself for suggesting that Ziggy come along in the first place. It had seemed like such a good idea back at the guild, but now Sparks was starting to realize he might have just made another huge mistake.

* * *

"Watch your step, Ziggy," Sparks called back from the front of the line.

Ziggy was a nervous wreck. He had been so ever since the ground had literally swallowed him whole and he had found himself in the one place he did not want to end up in while on this journey. He was holding onto his flashlight with trembling paws, slowly moving it around in all directions to try and see as much of his surroundings as possible.

He was currently third in the lineup of four Pokémon, and the group was traveling down a low, narrow corridor with thick, rocky walls on either side. It felt very stuffed and cramped. Ziggy swore at times that the walls were closing in on him.

They wouldn't, right? Mystery Dungeons couldn't do that…could they?

Ziggy was trying his best to put on a brave face. He was trying to remind himself that all three of his friends were here, and they were all smart and experienced at this sort of stuff. They would be there to look out for him, and help him if he needed it.

Still, though, Ziggy could feel his heart pounding like crazy in his chest. He was utterly terrified. It wasn't so much the darkness that worried him. He had spent most of life in the dark; he was used to it. The fact was that Carmen had made it painfully clear that he wasn't supposed to be down here. He had only heard about Mystery Dungeons from others, but they sounded very dangerous. Maybe even deadly.

Now, they were searching for the exit. Sparks was leading the way, Kona was behind him, while Rico was bringing up the rear. Sparks had just chosen one of the four passageways at random and their journey had begun. So far, they had passed through three more open rooms like the first one they had ended up in, but still there was no sign of the entrance.

Ziggy could feel the danger all around him. He was the only one without training. He was the only one with a weak little flashlight instead of a fancy, bright badge. He found himself asking why he had ever agreed to do this in the first place. Why had he thought he would be able to do something like this?

"Another room…" Sparks announced from the front.

"Still no exit, though?" Kona asked.

"No…"

The group all made their way out of the passageway and into the next small but relatively open room. To Ziggy's eyes, it looked just the same as all the other rooms they had found. It seemed as if they had just been going in circles this whole time.

"Bad luck…" Sparks remarked.

Besides the one they had entered through, this room had two other passages leading out of it. One was directly in front, while the other was off to the left.

"Keep going straight?" Rico asked.

"Probably…" Sparks replied, "There can't be much more to this without having to go down…Although we haven't found a way down either."

A nervous whine escaped from Ziggy's throat before he could stop himself.

"It's okay, Ziggy," Kona said calmly, "This isn't unusual. We're bound to find the entrance if we just keep looking."

"Right," Sparks agreed, "So let's not dawdle and keep going. Same formation, team." He then started walking over to the entrance that was straight ahead, with Kona and Rico following him. Ziggy hurried to keep up with them, not wanting to get left behind even just a little bit.

After Kona fell in line behind Sparks, the Raichu turned back and looked at Ziggy. "You're doing great, Ziggy," he said, "Just stay close to Kona."

Ziggy nodded nervously. "Uh huh…"

"Hoo…" Rico piped up from the back, "It's chilly down here."

"All the more reason to get the heck out," Sparks replied, "So let's go. C'mon, guys."

So, the group of four made their way down another of the identical looking passages. Ziggy stayed in step behind Kona as if his life depended on it. He tried to calm himself by saying that as long as he could see the Dewott, he hadn't done anything wrong and he'd be safe.

He had heard some of the others mention the fact that some Mystery Dungeons had 'less than savoury' Pokémon who lived in the dungeons. It was more common in the past, but there were still some characters who hung out down below. Ziggy was hoping with all his might they would not run into one.

"Hold up!" Sparks exclaimed, stopping everyone so quickly that Ziggy nearly rammed into Kona's back. He briefly panicked, thinking they had run into the very Pokémon he had been worrying about.

"What is it?" Kona asked.

Once Sparks was sure they had all stopped, he angled his badge downwards for them to see. In front of him, there was an opening in the middle of the passageway along the right side. Honestly it was more of a hole than a passage, since it sloped down at a sharply steep angle. If Sparks hadn't noticed it, everyone in the group would have stepped their right paw down into the hole.

"Oh crap…" Rico remarked.

"Well, we found the way _down_…" Sparks said.

"Yeesh. That's pretty steep," Kona commented, "It almost looks like the top of a waterslide but without the water."

"All right, everybody be careful stepping around this thing. There's not a lot of room," Sparks then said, gesturing for everyone to follow. He then very carefully and precariously sidled across the other side of the passageway. As he was the largest of the group he was barely able to keep his paws on flat ground, but soon made it to the other side safely.

Kona followed after him, with Sparks keeping his badge light trained on the hole so it was visible, and then they both turned to Ziggy. It was his turn.

Ziggy gulped and nervously pointed his flashlight at the hole. The beam of light jittered from his trembling paws. Even with two sources of light trained on the hole, he couldn't see where it ended up. Just a steep slope that seemed to run down into the depths of nothing. It was a fairly smooth-looking surface, though with some odd rocks and stones here and there that somehow managed to cling onto the steep grade. It would not be a pleasant experience to fall down that thing.

"C'mon, Ziggy," Sparks called to him, "You can make it. You're a lot smaller than the two of us, so you've got a lot of room."

"Don't look down," Kona said, "Just look at us and go slowly."

"I-I…" Ziggy stammered. He had been on the edge of panic this entire time, and the prospect of sidling past this deep hole was not helping matters.

"Ziggy…" Sparks said in a firm but encouraging voice, "You can do it. Just don't panic and you'll be fine. Trust me."

Finally, Ziggy managed to tear his eyes away from the deadly, evil hole. He angled his flashlight over towards Sparks, who was giving him a reassuring smile. He was holding out his paw so that Ziggy could grab it once he got close enough.

An audible whimper echoed through the caves, but Ziggy then shook his head and took a few quick breaths to try and calm his nerves. "Okay…Okay…" he whispered. He moved to the left and pressed himself as close as he could to the wall opposite the hole. He held his flashlight in his right paw, leaned his back against the wall, and started to slowly inch his way forwards.

"That's it. You've got it…" Sparks said.

Ziggy held his left paw out towards Sparks' paw, even though he wasn't nearly close enough to grab it yet. Seconds passed by that felt like years as Ziggy slowly, ever so slowly, sidled past the hole. He could feel his whole body quivering with nervousness, but it couldn't be helped. He kept his gaze locked on Sparks, tried to keep his breathing under control, and just kept shuffling his paws as much as he dared.

Eventually, his gaze drifted and ended up looking back down the hole again before he even realized he was doing it. He gasped and froze on the spot, feeling a painful spike of panic shoot up his spine.

He then gasped again as he was suddenly grabbed by his paw and yanked over to the side. He yelped loudly before he suddenly found himself in the fuzzy embrace of the large Raichu.

"Gotcha!" Sparks exclaimed.

Ziggy's heart missed a couple of beats, and then a cold shiver ran through his body when he realized what had happened. He was past the hole and safely in the grasp of Sparks. He'd made it. Ziggy let out a shuddering breath and finally allowed himself to relax a little.

He looked up at Sparks, who smiled down at him. Sparks then looked back across to the other side, and Ziggy turned his head to look as well. He ended up looking just in time to see Rico _leap_ across the hole.

"Rico!" Sparks immediately scolded him, "Don't be an idiot. The last thing we need is for someone to get hurt while we're down here."

"Hey, relax. I made it just fine," Rico replied.

"Seriously, Rico. I don't want to have to go back to the guild and tell Terry you fell down a hole and broke your leg."

This seemed to immediately sober the Riolu up. "You're right," he said in a quieter voice, "I'm sorry."

Sparks nodded. He released Ziggy from his embrace and turned around. "Okay, so the next room is right here, actually." Ziggy glanced over Sparks' shoulder and saw that the passage did indeed open up into another empty room.

"Hey, you mind if I take point for a while?" Rico asked.

"Why?"

"We're not havin' much luck so far, so maybe I'll have better luck? You never know…" Rico moved past Kona to stand right behind Sparks.

The Raichu started moving into the room. "I mean, I guess we can do that…"

Rico took that as his cue to immediately squeeze past Sparks and enter the room first. "Cool. Let's go left!"

"Hey, easy now…" Sparks said, "Keep your head cool."

"Look! The left passageway's wider, too! It'll be easier to walk down."

"You sure? Something tells me that the wider passage won't lead to the entrance. Remember, the entrance was small enough that large Pokémon couldn't fit through it…"

Kona walked off to join the others in the room, but Ziggy didn't follow. He was only vaguely aware that the others had left him, because he was focusing on something else.

Ziggy had heard a noise. While Sparks and Rico had been bantering, he swore that he'd heard a noise that didn't sound like either of their voices. When they had gone into the room, he'd heard it again.

It was a quiet, rather high-pitched noise. It definitely didn't sound natural, like the sound of dripping water or falling pebbles. Ziggy remained standing there, trying his best to listen. The others were still talking in the room, and Ziggy was about to ask them to be quiet when he heard it again.

Ziggy's head, as well as his flashlight, turned towards the hole. The very same hole he had just sidled past. The noise was coming from inside of it. Ziggy's curiosity only grew, and he furrowed his brow in confusion. He took a small step closer to the hole and strained to listen again. It was like a sound that he knew. It almost sounded like…

…a voice.

Ziggy leaned his head down, bringing his ear as close to the hole as he dared. For a moment he heard nothing, but then he heard it once more. A quiet, almost imperceptible sound that was coming from down the hole. He was certain he could hear it. It almost sounded like sniffling, or crying.

He then took another small step forward to try and listen more closely, and that's when disaster struck. Something beneath his paw came loose, causing his paw to slip forward right into the hole. Ziggy yelped in surprise as he suddenly lost his balance entirely, falling onto his backside. Gravity took its course immediately and Ziggy instantly started to slide down the hole. He scrambled with his paws to find something to hold onto, but there was nothing he could grab.

"_Ziggy!_"

Without even a chance to call out for help, Ziggy began to slide down the steep, smooth rock slope of the hole. Like a playground ride from hell, he quickly found himself sliding and tumbling down uncontrollably with the light of his flashlight whipping about randomly and creating a horrifying vision of flashing brightness and darkness. It was utter chaos, overloading his senses completely. He had no idea what was happening, or even which way was up and down. It was one of the most horribly disorienting experiences of his life.

When then awful ride was finally over, Ziggy found himself lying in a heap on a cave floor. He groaned in pain, feeling like somebody had just literally beaten him up. Nothing felt severely damaged, but he certainly had some aches and bruises from his tumble. With a grunt of discomfort, he hauled himself up off the ground and into a sitting position.

"Ziggy? Ziggy, can you hear me?"

He could hear the Raichu's voice echoing down to him, which was a relief. At least he could still _hear_ Sparks. Ziggy held a paw to his head and groaned once more. When he opened his eyes, he saw mostly darkness.

"Ziggy?"

"I'm okay…!" he called out, hoping his voice carried far enough to be heard.

A loud sigh of relief could be heard. "Thank Arceus… Are you hurt, Ziggy?" Sparks called down to him.

"No, I think I'm okay…"

Still feeling a little disoriented, Ziggy tried to look around once more. He realized, perhaps a bit belatedly, that he wasn't seeing complete pitch blackness and could still make out the vague shapes of rocks and the walls. He turned and looked over his shoulder, and was grateful to see his flashlight lying on the ground nearby. It was still illuminated and seemed to still be working properly. He leaned over to pick it up.

"Where are you, Ziggy?" Sparks called to him, "Where did you end up? Can you see anything?"

"J-just a minute…" Ziggy called back. He held his flashlight up and started using it to scan his surroundings. His heart was still beating fast from the frightening experience he'd just had, and he could feel the slowly building sense of panic with the realization that he was now separated from Sparks and the others.

The light of the flashlight revealed, to Ziggy's dismay, a room that looked exactly like all the other rooms they had been traversing thus far. Besides the opening of the shaft that had led him down here in the first place, nothing distinct stood out to him. There was just one other exit on the far side. That feeling of panic started to grow as he realized just how much trouble he'd gotten himself into. His breathing started to quicken, he started to sweat, and his paws trembled so much that he nearly dropped the flashlight multiple times. Ziggy continued to move the flashlight's beam across the room, but all he saw was an endless field of colourless grey walls, rocks and floors.

Suddenly, a flash of blue!

The small creature gasped in terror. Ziggy himself gasped a moment later. There was a moment of complete silence as Ziggy sat still, holding the flashlight in place, in utter disbelief.

"…Hey!" Ziggy eventually called out, "H-hey, it's you!"

He leaned forward and tried to shine the flashlight at a better angle. Across from him on the other side of the room, sitting huddled under a tiny overhanging slab of rock that jutted out from the wall, was a little Nidoran cub. The little Pokémon was curled up in a ball, trying to make herself look as small as possible. Her large ears were pinned tightly against her head, her tiny whiskers were drooping, and her eyes were as wide as dinner plates. She was quivering even more than Ziggy was.

Ziggy started to crawl with three paws towards her. "Oh my gosh, it's really you!"

The Nidoran whimpered and tried to scuttle backwards, even though there was no room left for her to go anywhere.

Immediately, Ziggy stopped. "N-no, no, no," he said, "Don't be afraid. I'm not gonna hurt you. I'm…W-we're here to help you."

Her demeanour didn't change, however. She simply curled up even tighter, trying to squeeze herself back into her little corner as much as physically possible.

"You're…um…" Ziggy thought for a moment before he remembered. "You're Zuri, right?"

The Nidoran perked up just slightly, her breath hitching in her throat for a brief moment.

"You're Zuri, the lost cub?" Ziggy asked, crawling forward a few more steps. Unfortunately, this caused the Nirodan to panic and try crawling backwards again, so Ziggy stopped once more. "No, please…I…I'm not a bad guy. I'm not gonna hurt you." He then realized that she likely couldn't see him because of the blinding light, so he turned the flashlight around so it lit up his face instead. "See?" he asked, "I-I'm nice!"

There was no response. At first, Ziggy was afraid that she had bolted the moment the light was off of her. However, when he turned the flashlight back around, she was still frozen in the same spot. Ziggy could see that terror had taken hold of her hard. He could remember a few times in his life when fear had gripped him as hard as that, to the point where normal things didn't even make sense anymore.

"Zuri," he said, speaking in a quiet voice, "We're…here to rescue you. W-we came down so we could find you. Um…" Still, Ziggy's words didn't really seem to have much of an impact. A moment passed, and Ziggy realized what it was he needed to say. "Your mom sent us down here, Zuri."

Finally, this seemed to have the intended effect. She lifted her head slightly, her ears perking up just a bit. "M…M-mommy…?" she squeaked, her voice almost inaudible, "Y…Y-y…You know…m-my mommy…?"

Ziggy nodded earnestly. "Yeah! Yeah, she's…she's, uh… up there waiting for you." He then furrowed his brow and racked his brains. He knew what he was looking for, he had heard the others say it, so why couldn't he remember it? Ziggy closed his eyes for a moment and thought hard, playing back in his memory everything he could remember about what the others had talked to him about.

"Asha!" he exclaimed finally, "Your mom's name is Asha. She's a Nidoqueen, and she…contacted the guild to rescue you."

Zuri perked up completely, her big ears rising all the way up. For a moment there was silence as she stared at Ziggy with a look of shock. A tense couple of seconds passed. Then, Zuri suddenly scrambled to her paws and scurried out of her hiding spot as quickly as she could, running straight towards Ziggy.

The Buizel grunted as Zuri practically threw herself at him and latched onto him with a tightly gripping hug. "Ah! Wh…?"

Zuri clutched his torso tightly, hugging herself to him and shivering profusely. She immediately began to cry. The weeping of the terrified young cub was like a dagger to his heart. The Nidoran nuzzled herself into his fur, leaving Ziggy unsure of what to do besides to gently hug her back.

"H-hey…Calm down…" he said, trying to keep uncertainty out of his voice, "I-it's okay…"

"I…I'm so _scared_!" she cried.

"Oh… Oh, I know…" Ziggy said, giving her a pat on the back, "I know what it's like to be scared…But it's okay now. I…We found you."

"I'm really scared! I don't like it down here! I wanna go home! I want my mommy!"

"Hey, c'mon…C'mon…" Ziggy said, "T-try to relax, okay…" He tried to think of other things Pokémon had said to him before when he was upset. "Um…N-no need to worry, all right? I'm here…for you…"

Zuri sniffled and seemed to calm down a little bit. She stopped gripping him so tightly, which Ziggy was thankful for as the Nidoran had some sharp claws. She raised her head and looked up at him. Ziggy had dropped the flashlight when she had tackled him, and it was laying nearby in a way that just barely illuminated the both of them. As such, he could see the fear in her eyes, but he saw something else. Something he hadn't really expected to see.

Trust.

She sniffled again and said in a soft voice, "Y-you're here to rescue me?"

"Uh…" Ziggy murmured. He thought about being truthful about the fact that he was a rookie at this whole business and wasn't even supposed to be down here in the first place, but he didn't want to shake her confidence any worse than it already was or confuse her. "Yeah," he said, "Yeah, me and my friends came down here to rescue you."

A small smile briefly graced her lips. "Th-thank you…"

"Heh…N-no problem…"

"…_Ziggy? Answer me, Ziggy!_"

With a gasp, Ziggy realized that he hadn't been paying attention to anything else. Sparks had been shouting at him from the top of the hole, and he had only belatedly registered this in his mind. Sparks sounded very worried, so Ziggy tried to crawl back over to where the hole was. He at first tried to take Zuri off of him and set her down, but she fussed when he did. She didn't seem to want to let go, so Ziggy just settled for shifting along the ground on his backside until he was back at the hole.

"Yeah, I'm here! I'm here, Sparks!" he called up.

Ziggy heard a rather loud sigh of relief from the other end. "Don't _do_ that, Ziggy! You scared me half to death! I thought something had happened to you."

"Sorry…" Ziggy grimaced.

"Well, anyway…" Sparks continued, "There's other entrances to that room down there, right?"

"Just one," he answered.

"Okay, well listen! Kona and I are gonna try to find our way down to your level and then look for you. Stay where you are and don't wander off, okay? Rico's gonna stay here at the top of the shaft and keep talking to you."

"All right!" Ziggy called back.

"Just stay put until we find you!"

Ziggy glanced down at Zuri, who looked scared and confused, and then called out once more. "I found her!"

There was a noticeable pause. "…What?"

"The Nidoran cub! I found her!"

"You…Really? Are you serious?"

"Yeah! She's right here with me."

Another pause, and then Sparks shouted down in a happier tone, with just a touch of disbelief. "Well…Great! That's fantastic! Is she okay?"

"She's fine, I think," Ziggy replied, "She's just scared."

"Um, all right…Let's see…" Sparks said, "Same plan, I guess. Just stay down there with her and we'll come find you. Rico can call us with his badge, so yell at him if anything comes up."

"All right…"

"We're gonna head out now, so we'll see you soon. Stay strong, Zig!" A moment later, Ziggy could just barely hear the sound of a pair of pawsteps heading away.

"You really found the lost cub?" Rico called down a minute later, "That's awesome! Nice job, Ziggy!"

"Aw, well…" Ziggy replied, blushing a little under the praise. He then looked down at Zuri, who had been silent during the whole exchange. Ziggy picked up the flashlight, which had been discarded on the ground nearby, and set it up next to them so that it was standing on its end. The light from it pointed straight upwards and managed to light up their immediate surroundings somewhat.

"Who was…?" she whispered to him once they could properly see.

"They're my friends," Ziggy replied, "My…my team, I guess. Guildmembers. A rescue team from the Rescue Society."

"Are they gonna help us…?"

Ziggy nodded. "Definitely. I was talking to Sparks, and…Well, he's amazing. He's probably the most amazing Pokémon I know. Once he finds us, I know we're gonna be out of here in no time."

Zuri nodded, seeming a bit relaxed upon hearing that. She was still hugging him tightly, so after a little bit of coaxing Ziggy finally managed to convince her to instead sit down next to him. "Um…What's your name?" she asked him.

"Oh. Uh, my name's Ziggy."

This caused her to giggle and say, "That's a funny name."

Ziggy frowned and said, "What do you mean…?"

"It's silly!" she chirped, "I like it!"

"Oh… Well, if you _like_ it, I suppose…"

"Mr. Ziggy Wiggy!" she said with another giggle.

Ziggy gave her a perplexed look. It was astounding to see how quickly she had shifted from fright to bubbly laughter. He wasn't sure what to say in response to the nickname she had just created for him, so he simply moved on. "So, uh, what happened? How'd you end up down here?"

She stopped giggling and her smile faltered. "I didn't see the hole and I fell in," she replied, "I tried to climb back up, but it was dark and I couldn't see. I heard mom calling for me, but then I _couldn't_ anymore. I tried to turn around and look for the light, but then I fell down _another_ hole…and so I just stayed here until you found me."

"Heh…" Ziggy spoke, "Well…It's good that we found you."

"It's really, really scary in here…" Zuri murmured, "It's cold, and I'm hungry…"

"I wish I had food to give you…" Ziggy said, recalling that the food was in Kona's backpack, which was still up on the surface.

"I'm scared…"

"Hey, don't worry," Ziggy said, "We'll be out of here soon. Just…Just a little longer…" However, he frowned as he took another look at the room around them. He was again reminded of just how frightening the situation was and how terrified he was. He didn't want to freak out in front of Zuri, but that was easier said than done.

He looked back at Zuri and noticed she was doing the same thing. She was also worriedly looking around.

"H-hey, um… Why don't we talk about something else until Sparks gets here?" he asked her.

"L-like what?" she replied. It was somewhat eerie to hear her speak in the same nervous, stuttering voice as him.

"Like…anything you want. Um…" Ziggy thought back to things others had asked when they were trying to learn about him. "What's…your favourite colour?"

* * *

Ziggy and Zuri spent quite a while sitting alone in the cave. It was hard to keep track of time, but it felt like at least a half an hour had passed.

However, they had spent the time in relative comfort at least. Being that she was so young, Ziggy found it was easy to distract Zuri from the scariness and have her talk about something else. He spent most of his time just listening to her talk about her life, her likes and dislikes, and anything else that came to her mind.

Rico called down from the top of the shaft every once in a while to make sure they were doing okay, and that was enough to give Ziggy some peace of mind. It was relieving to know that, no matter what his panicked mind was trying to tell him, he had not been abandoned. Sparks and his friends were looking for them. Eventually Rico had informed them that Sparks and Kona had found a passage that led downwards, so now it was only a matter of time before they found the room Ziggy was in.

"Mr. Ziggy Wiggy?"

Ziggy tried to keep from wincing. She had taken to calling him that and he wasn't exactly fond of the nickname, but he let it slide. "Yeah?"

"I hope your flashlight doesn't run out…"

Eyes widened, Ziggy glanced over at where he had placed the flashlight. Once again, it was standing up, casting light similar to how a lamp would and lighting up the both of them. He hadn't even considered the flashlight running out of power. "…Y-yeah," he said, "I hope not…"

"I hope mommy's not mad at me…"

"Don't be silly," Ziggy replied, "Your mom's worried about you. She's the one who called us in, remember?

"But what if she's mad that I got lost? She doesn't like it when I run off, because she says she doesn't want me to get lost…"

Frowning, Ziggy looked her right in the eyes. "She won't," he said, "She's going to be really, really happy to see you. She's definitely not going to be mad at you because she loves y-" Ziggy suddenly hiccupped before he could finish his sentence. He cleared his throat and tried to repeat the sentence, but found he couldn't.

Zuri looked up at him with concerned eyes. "Mr. Ziggy…?" she spoke softly.

His thoughts were then interrupted when he heard a noise. Zuri's ears perked, indicating that she heard it too. It sounded like pawsteps. Zuri gasped in fright and suddenly pounced onto Ziggy, hugging him tightly in fear.

Ziggy reached for the flashlight with a trembling paw. His heart pounded heavy in his chest as he held it up towards the passageway leading out of the room. He held his breath and listened closely. Those were definitely pawsteps, and they were coming closer.

"…Ziggy?"

A rush of elation and relief washed over the Buizel and he immediately relaxed. "Sparks?" he called back.

"Ziggy? Is that you?"

"Yeah! In here, Sparks!" Ziggy sighed and leaned back a little. He kept the flashlight pointed out the passageway, hoping that Sparks would be able to see the light from it. Soon enough, a second source of light started emitting from the opening. A moment later, from around the corner, a very welcome sight stepped into the room.

Sparks looked over at Ziggy and then made a beeline for him. Kona entered a moment later and followed behind him. "Ziggy! Oh, thank Arceus, am I glad to see you!" Sparks exclaimed.

Ziggy tried to stand up, but then remembered that there was a Nidoran hugging him. She didn't seem keen on moving, so after a moment of thought he reached his own paws around to support her backside. Now somewhat carrying her, he was able to gracelessly stand up.

When Sparks reached him, he bent over for a moment and stood there panting. "What a relief…" he murmured.

"Thank goodness…" Ziggy said, "I was really worried."

"You sure you're okay?" Sparks asked once he stood up straight again, "That looked like a nasty fall."

Ziggy chuckled and said, "It was more like a slide. No, I'm fine Sparks."

Sparks nodded, satisfied with the answer. He then leaned his face in closer to the Nidoran that was still clutching his torso tightly. "Hello there," he said in a soft, sweet voice, "You must be Zuri."

Zuri had turned her head to look at Sparks, but Ziggy could feel that she was still shivering. She didn't say anything in response.

"Zuri," he said to her, "This is Sparks. The one I was talking to earlier. He's my friend and he's here to help you."

"Well, I'm glad we found you," Sparks said, "Or, rather Ziggy was the one who found you. What a lucky break, hm?"

When Zuri still didn't say anything, Ziggy gave her a little nudge and said, "You can trust him, Zuri. I… There's nobody I trust more than Sparks." He saw Sparks gaze up at him for a moment with an appreciative smile.

Finally, Zuri said something. "H…H-hi…"

"Oh, it's because I'm big, right?" Sparks said with a quiet chuckle, "Don't worry, we're part of the team that's gonna get you out of here. Speaking of which, we should get on that right away. I think we've all spent a little too much time down here." Sparks then sat up straight and tapped his badge. "We found 'em, Rico!"

The Riolu's voice responded, though not through Sparks' badge. Rather, it could be heard shouted down the chasm Ziggy had fallen into. "I'm up here, you dork! I can hear you guys talking!"

"I'm using the badge for clarity!" Sparks retorted.

While he and Rico bantered with one another, Kona walked over towards Ziggy. "Hey, Zig," he said with a smile, "Holdin' out okay?"

"Um…Yeah, sorta," he replied, "But…I really wanna get out of here now."

"Heh. I think we all do." Kona then leaned in to address Zuri, like Sparks had done. "Hi, sweetheart…"

"Hello…" she replied in a very soft voice.

Kona looked up at Ziggy and chuckled. "Looks like you made a friend." The Dewott stood up straight and looked Ziggy right in the eyes. "You're being very brave right now," he said quietly.

"…Y-yeah, well…" Ziggy murmured, unsure of how to respond to a statement like that.

"All right!" Sparks said, getting everyone's attention, "I gave Rico directions to get to the top of where we came down to this floor. We'll meet him there, and then get the heck out of here. Let's not waste any more time, okay? If there's nothing else that needs to be addressed, let's go."

Nobody had anything to bring up, so Sparks gave everyone a determined nod. Kona walked over towards the passageway, but Sparks approached Ziggy instead. "Here," he said, "I should hold her because I'm bigger."

Ziggy agreed with the logic and nodded. Sparks then reached out and gently grasped the Nidoran by her shoulders. When he started to lift her, though, she began to fuss. She looked up at Ziggy with a distressed look and shook her head. "What? What's wrong?" he asked her, while Sparks stopped trying to lift her. She just whined softly and gripped him tighter. "Don't worry," Ziggy reassured her, "You can trust Sparks. He's really, really nice and gentle. Besides, you'll probably be a lot more comfortable if he's carrying you."

He tried again to pull her away from her embrace but she just whined softly and shook her head. Ziggy frowned and looked up at Sparks helplessly.

Sparks let her go entirely. "I think she only wants _you_ to carry her," he remarked.

"Uh…"

"Can you carry her while you walk?" he asked, tilting his head.

Ziggy looked down at the Nidoran. "Um…I think so… Maybe if- Hey, Zuri? Can you, like, hold onto my shoulder with your forepaws?"

Zuri looked up and him and nodded. Right away, she carefully climbed up out of the cradle of his forepaws and gripped onto his shoulder. Her backside remained resting supported by Ziggy's left paw, but now his right paw was free. As such, he was able to bend down and pick up his flashlight.

"That gonna work?" Sparks asked.

"I guess."

"You sure you wanna ride with him?" Sparks then asked the cub. When she nodded, he shrugged and said, "Okay, that's fine. But if Ziggy gets tired, one of us will have to carry you. Okay? You don't want to tire him out, right?"

"N-no…" Zuri whispered.

"It's fine," Ziggy said, "Can I walk between you guys?"

"I was going to suggest that myself. Anyway, are you ready? We should really get moving."

* * *

The atmosphere inside of the Mystery Dungeon felt strangely calm as Ziggy and the others moved through it.

He was still carrying Zuri, who was holding on to him tightly but also looking around in nervous curiosity. Her eyes tended to follow wherever Ziggy's flashlight was pointing. His arm was getting a little tired holding her up, but it wasn't too bad. He didn't mind if it made her more comfortable during the rescue.

Sparks had easily managed to lead him back to where he and Kona had descended, and at the top of the sloped passageway they met up with Rico. From there they had continued onto another empty room and were now traversing down what Ziggy _hoped_ would be their last corridor.

"Mr. Ziggy…?" Zuri whispered into his ear.

"Yeah?" he whispered back.

"I don't like it down here…"

He shook his head and said, "Me neither."

"We're almost out of here," Rico chimed in from behind him.

Zuri looked over Ziggy's shoulder at him but didn't say anything. Throughout the adventure so far, she didn't seem keen on talking to any of the other Pokémon besides Ziggy for some reason.

"Wait! Hold on!" Sparks called out from the front, "I think I see light! Let me turn off my badge and see…" There was a short pause and then he happily proclaimed, "That's light! We found the entrance!"

"_Finally!_" Kona groaned.

The group moved into the room, and Ziggy looked up to see a very welcome sight. There was a small hole in the roof of the room, off to the side near one of the walls, where light was streaming in. Even with all of the badge lights in the room below, the opening was wide enough to let in sufficient light to be seen clearly.

Ziggy let out a huge sigh. A massive cloud of anxiousness he had been holding in finally dissipated as the sensation of being trapped underground went away. They could get out now. They would return to the safer outside world. It was right there.

Sparks walked forwards and aimed his badge light up towards the hole. "Mmm…" he murmured in thought. His light revealed that there _was_ a slope leading up to the hole, rather than it just being a hole in the ceiling with no way to access it. However, the slope was incredibly steep and didn't look easily traversable.

"Goodness! You fell down that, Zuri?" Kona asked, "It's a wonder you weren't badly hurt…"

Ziggy was also looking at the slope in worry. The others had talked about the entrance to the Mystery Dungeon being a small cave opening between some rocks, but he hadn't realized there would be a massive drop on the other side. No wonder Zuri hadn't been able to find her way back out.

"Well, that's not exactly typical…" Sparks remarked, "Most Mystery Dungeons you can just walk into…"

"What's the plan, Sparks?" Kona asked. Ziggy looked over at the Raichu as well. He had been wondering the same thing, but probably would have asked it in a much more worried way.

Sparks turned to look at Rico. "What d'ya think? Can you climb up there?"

"Eh, it'll be tricky…" Rico replied, "But no sweat. You want me to go up first?"

"Yes. Climb up and exit the cave, then head back to where we left all of our stuff and get some rope. We'll use that to get the rest of us out."

Rico grinned excitedly and saluted. "Sounds like a plan!"

"Just be _careful_, Rico," Sparks warned, "And especially once you're up there, walk back to our stuff really carefully because there might be more sinkholes."

A few minutes later, the plan was put into effect. Sparks instructed both Kona and Ziggy to point their lights at where Rico was climbing so he could see. Ziggy watched anxiously as the Riolu scaled up the steep slope with relative swiftness. He had never really seen Rico in action before and was impressed at how agile he was. It took him no time at all to climb up the rocky slope with just his paws and make his way to the top.

Rico then stood on a single flat rock that rested at the top of the slope, half-embedded in the wall and almost directly underneath the opening up above. Ziggy could see that this would be the most challenging part as, opposed to climbing a slope, Rico now had to go straight up. The Riolu stood carefully on the rock for a few moments, looking like he was considering his options.

"Can you make it?" Sparks called up to him.

"It's raining!" Rico called back.

"It is?"

"Yeah, so the opening is a bit wet and slippery…"

Sparks grumbled softly for a moment. "Well, be careful up there and take a look. See if it's possible to-_Rico!_" The Raichu cut himself off when, in the middle of his sentence, Rico suddenly jumped straight up towards the opening with his paws outstretched. He grabbed onto something unseen, likely the rocky edge of the cave opening or something, and hung there precariously. Ziggy's breath caught in his throat, but then a few seconds later Rico managed to scramble up and out of sight.

"I'm up!" the Riolu called back down.

"Rico, are you _nuts_? You could have fallen and broken your neck!" Sparks shouted.

"Don't worry about it. I'm fine," Rico replied, "I'm gonna go get the rope now. Hang tight!"

Ziggy glanced over at Sparks and saw the Raichu sigh heavily and pinch his muzzle. "That boy needs a crash course in common sense…" he murmured.

"Don't stress out, Sparks," Kona said, "The important thing is that he made it up there unharmed."

"I do not want to be the Pokémon to have to go back to the guild and tell Terry that his boyfriend just cracked his skull open…"

The cave was silent for a moment. "That's fair…" Kona eventually commented, "I wouldn't wish that on anybody…"

Sparks shook his head and sighed again. "Whatever. You're right. I won't dwell on it. Rico's out of danger now, and soon enough we will be too."

"I understand where you're coming from, though," Kona said, "Terry would be heartbroken even if Rico just got a broken leg… or a sprained ankle."

"Heh…" Sparks chuckled wryly, "Those two are cute together."

"They really are. They've gotten a lot more comfortable being affectionate around the rest of us lately. Things must be going well between the two of them."

While Sparks and Kona continued to talk about the guild's young couple, Ziggy turned his attention to Zuri. The Nidoran was still hanging off of him, and looked up at him with big curious eyes. "We're almost out," Ziggy said to her in a quiet voice, "Just a bit longer."

"Is mommy out there…?" she asked.

"Uh… No, I think your mom's waiting back at the road, or with the police…or something. She's somewhere safe."

"Mr. Ziggy, I'm scared…"

Ziggy paused for a moment, looking into her frightened eyes, and said, "I am too. A little bit. But, we gotta get out of here, so we're just gonna havta be brave…"

Rico returned a short while later, making his presence known by calling down from the surface. He informed the others that he'd gotten a rope and tied it to a nearby tree. He then tossed the rest of the rope down, which unraveled and fell to the dungeon floor. Sparks walked over and picked it up. There was a lot of extra length, enough to span the distance from the floor back up to the surface again.

"All right," Sparks said authoritatively, "Kona first, Ziggy second, me last. Kona, you lead the way, and Ziggy you stay close behind him and watch where he steps. I'll bring up the rear so I can catch you in case you slip."

Ziggy gulped and looked over at Kona, who smiled at him encouragingly. The Dewott had already picked up the rope and wrapped it around his wrists to better grip it. Ziggy quickly realized that he wouldn't be able to hold his flashlight while climbing, so he gave it back to Sparks who stowed it in his backpack. The relative darkness returned as Ziggy nervously picked up a length of the rope in line behind Kona and tried to mimic how he was holding it.

He quickly realized that there was no way he could climb up and still hold onto Zuri like he was doing. He looked down at her and thought for a moment. "Um… Okay, Zuri? D'you think you can ride on my back and hold onto my ring?" he asked, pointing to the floatation ring around his neck.

"Won't that hurt?"

Yes, it would be quite an uncomfortable experience. "No, I'll be fine," he lied.

He bent forward while Zuri awkwardly clambered over the Buizel until she was on his back. He felt her grab hold of his ring with her paws and he stifled a whine. She wasn't squeezing it too hard, but was still squeezing it enough so that she could hold on while he stood back up. It felt like somebody was very gently choking him, but he ignored the discomfort.

"Will that work, Zig?" Sparks asked, "I was about to suggest she ride on my back, but it _would_ be better if she was on you."

"It's fine," he said, "Let's just get out of here…"

"Couldn't agree more. All right, let's get climbing. Take it slow, watch your step, and I'm gonna stay real close behind you so I'll definitely catch you if you slip."

"Oh gosh…" Ziggy murmured, trying not to let his fear slip into his voice for Zuri's sake.

"I've got my tail around the rope. I'm not gonna fall if I have to catch you. You'll be fine."

"Okay…Okay, let's do this," Ziggy said, suppressing a shiver. The truth was that he wasn't exactly a stranger to climbing things. If it wasn't for the darkness, he probably would have felt confident in climbing up on his own like Rico had done. It was something he had gotten good at in his days on the streets, as it helped him evade prying eyes.

He was worried because of the Nidoran on his back.

Ahead of him, illuminated by both Sparks' badge and the light from the surface above, Kona started to climb. Ziggy watched how he held the rope around his wrists and basically used it for support while climbing up the steep terrain. Once Kona was a short distance up, Ziggy started to climb as well. As he started to fight against gravity, the feeling of Zuri hanging off of his ring really started to hurt. He grit his teeth and just focused on getting to the top. This nightmare was almost over.

The climb wasn't quite as difficult as it had seemed from the bottom. It wasn't a straight vertical wall they were going up, and there were plenty of flat-ish places to step with his paws. He kept a death grip on the rope and tried his best to stay calm. It was difficult to use the calming breathing techniques Sparks had taught him because of Zuri, though.

When he was about halfway up, he stopped for a moment to catch his breath. As he did, a wave of panic suddenly washed over him as the reality of what he was doing hit him hard. Images of Zuri losing her grip and falling all the way back down filled his mind and he tried his best to chase them away. "Sparks?" he called out.

"I'm still here," he replied, "Right behind you."

"Okay…Okay, good."

Ziggy just took a breath and focused on climbing. He knew he was almost there. Kona was practically at the top already. He just had to keep going and trust that Sparks would indeed be there to catch him.

To his relief, they made it up without anything happening. Kona was standing on the flat-ish rock that Rico had stood on before clambering up and out of the hole. Rico was shorter than the three of them, and so Kona was able to reach up and touch the hole with his paws. He couldn't quite reach the _ground_ up above, though.

Ziggy then watched as Kona used the rope to physically climb up the remaining distance. The Dewott gripped the rope, paw over paw, and lifted himself upwards. A moment later he reached up and grabbed something and was subsequently pulled up and out of the hole. Ziggy realized a moment later that Rico had grabbed onto him and pulled him up.

"Woo!" Kona's voice echoed from outside, "Made it!"

"All right… Your turn, buddy," Sparks spoke up from behind him.

Ziggy wanted to look back at him, but he couldn't turn his head with Zuri hanging off of him. More anxiousness started to cloud over him as he pulled himself up to the flat-ish rock as well. From there, he stood almost directly under the hole. A few errant raindrops from the outside fell onto his head. He looked up and saw that Kona was staring back down at him. "Uh…" Ziggy murmured in uncertainty.

"Okay…How're we gonna do this?" Kona asked.

"Ziggy and Zuri aren't going to fit through the hole at the same time," Sparks observed.

"I think you're gonna have to pass her up to me," Kona said, "You should be able to reach."

"Uhh…" Ziggy murmured again. He glanced down at his paws, both of which were still tightly gripping the rope. He may have been 'standing' at the moment, but he didn't exactly feel secure in his footing. If he tried to lift Zuri up above him in this state, he was sure he would lose his balance and drop her, and the thought made him shiver.

"Here…" Sparks said. Ziggy heard him clamber up the rope some more. There was a silent pause, and then Ziggy gasped when he suddenly felt two paws against his back. "I've got you. Go ahead."

"What?" Ziggy blurted out.

"I'm holding onto the rope with my tail and I'm propping you up. You can let go of the rope and lift her up. I've got you, buddy."

"B-but, Sparks…"

"Don't worry, Zig! I promise I've got you. Just get her out of the cave. Do it quickly but carefully."

"Um…" Ziggy gulped. "A-all right…" He looked down at his paws again. He was about to let go of the rope. The rope he had been using to basically scale up a wall. The rope that was keeping him from falling down to a horrible painful death on the cave floor below. Every single cell in his brain was screaming at him that letting go of the rope was something he should _absolutely_ not do.

But, Ziggy felt Sparks' paws against his back. They felt strong, and sturdy. Just like Sparks was.

Ziggy let go of the rope.

His life flashed before his eyes and an almost painful spike of fear jolted straight through his heart like a spear. But he didn't die. Like Sparks had promised, he was being sturdily held up. Once this fact finally processed in Ziggy's brain, he let out the breath he'd been holding.

Okay. Step one done. He knew Sparks couldn't hold him up forever, so he had to keep going. Ziggy then reached back towards Zuri, who had been completely silent through this whole endeavour, and grasped her as tightly around the waist as he could. He heard her whimper as he tried to coax her to let go of his ring. "C-c'mon, Zuri," he said, "I gotta get you out of here."

"I'm scared…" she mewled.

"I-i-it's okay," Ziggy said, cursing himself for being unable to suppress his stammering, "I've got you. We're almost done."

"C'mon, sweetheart," Sparks chimed in, "The quicker we do this, the quicker you can go home!"

Ziggy could hear the Nidoran quietly crying. He tried to grip her a little tighter to show that he could hold her just fine. "Zuri," he pleaded, "Trust me."

"But…"

"_Trust me!_"

There was a short, agonizing moment of silence. Then, thankfully, Ziggy finally felt the Nidoran's paws loosen and quickly shift from his ring to his paws. She had let go and was hugging his paws instead, allowing Ziggy to bring her back around to his front. He held her up in front of her by her torso, and could see the most terrified expression on her little face.

"Ziggy! Now!" Kona called down.

The Buizel looked up and saw that the Dewott was reaching down into the hole. He quickly raised his own paws and lifted Zuri up as high as he could reach. He grit his teeth and strained himself to stretch upwards as much as possible. At first nothing happened, and Ziggy was afraid that Kona couldn't reach her.

Then, suddenly, he felt Zuri get yanked right out of his paws, causing her to yelp in fright. The sudden loss of her weight on his limbs disoriented Ziggy and upset his balance. He cried out in fear as well, scrambling with his paws for something to hold onto.

"I got you! I got you!" Sparks exclaimed in a strained voice, "Grab the rope! Grab the rope!"

Ziggy, realizing that he wasn't plummeting to his death, looked around him to find where the rope was. He saw it and reached out to grab it with both paws. Once they were securely wrapped around the rope again, a feeling of security finally returned to him. He let out an audible breath of relief.

"You got it?" Sparks said, "Can I let go of you?"

Ziggy carefully wrapped the rope around his wrists like he had been doing before. Once he was sure he felt secure, he said, "I-I got it." He then felt Sparks remove his paws from his back. He looked back at the Raichu, who was busying himself with grabbing the rope with his paws and removing the grip of his tail.

"All right! You come up now, Ziggy," Kona called down, "You need me to grab you?"

For a moment, Ziggy just stood there and caught his breath. His heart was still hammering wildly in his chest, but with it came a feeling of relief. Zuri was no longer clinging to him. She was up on the surface and safe. The burden of that responsibility was no longer weighing on his shoulders. She couldn't fall down anymore.

Glancing up at Kona, he said, "Um…I think I can climb up myself."

"You sure?" Kona replied, "Be careful! It's slippery!"

Ziggy nodded and took a breath. He gave the rope a tug to make sure it was secure and then started to climb. He grasped the rope and pulled himself up the last couple metres from where he stood up to the surface. The familiar task came easily to him, but when he reached up to grab the ledge at the top he was startled when a pair of paws grabbed him. He realized that it was Kona, and allowed himself to be pulled up the rest of the way. A moment later his head and upper half emerged into the outside air. He reached out with his other paw and grabbed onto the nearby grass. With Kona's help, he hauled himself completely out of the hole and rolled himself onto his back.

He lay there panting for a moment, looking up as the gentle rain fell on his body. He was out. He was in the outside world, out of that horrible cave. The clouds were up above. He was breathing fresh air, garnished with the scent of newly-fallen rain. Ziggy had never been happier to be outside in the open in his whole life.

Ziggy then yelped in pain as a weight suddenly landed on his chest and started hugging him. "Mr. Ziggy Wiggy!" exclaimed a young, cheerful voice, "You did it! We're saved! We made it!"

The Buizel looked up to see Zuri basically sitting on his chest and looking down at him. She was halfway to soaked already, but she had the biggest smile. "Ah…H-hey, Zuri…"

"Thank you!" she exclaimed and leaned forward again, wrapping her paws tightly around his neck and squishing his ring painfully. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"Ngh! H-hey, c'mon…" Ziggy grunted, "It's n-no big deal…"

Zuri mercifully released him from her suffocating hug. "I was so scared, but then you got the rope, and we climbed up, and you got me up out of the hole and up here, and it's raining but whatever!" She continued to babble on like this endlessly, while Ziggy just watched helplessly from under her.

"Argh!" exclaimed a voice from nearby.

Ziggy immediately sat up. That was Sparks' voice! Zuri tumbled off of him, but landed softly on the grass nearby. He looked over at the cave entrance, where he saw the Raichu was halfway out of the hole. His fur was covered in dirt and was very messy and scruffy. Ziggy could see why, as Sparks could barely fit through the opening.

"I'm gonna punch whoever measured this thing," Sparks grumbled as he struggled to free the rest of himself. Kona was trying to help pull him up by his shoulders, while Rico was off to the side suppressing snickers.

"C'mon, big guy!" Kona said, "We're almost done with this!"

Sparks grit his teeth and struggled for a moment longer. Finally, he managed to haul his lower half up and out of the hole, and was able to fully climb out with his hind paws. His tail was the last part of him to exit the cave, and Sparks immediately collapsed onto his back a moment later.

"I'm gonna say it…" he muttered.

"Sparks, don't," Kona said, giving him a sympathetic smile.

"I'm definitely gonna say it."

"C'mon, you're not-"

"I'm gettin' too old for this…"

Rico was giggling in the background again. "He said it!" Kona meanwhile, just rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"Sparks?" Ziggy spoke up, "Are you okay?"

The Raichu craned his head back and looked at Ziggy while upside down. He then smiled and chuckled before rolling over onto his stomach. "I'm fine, Zig. I'm fine." He then stood up, looked around at the other guildmembers, and simply said, "We did it!"

"Mission successful!" Rico proclaimed.

"Yay!" Zuri chimed in, making Ziggy look down at her. The Nidoran's demeanour had changed completely now that she was safely out of the cave. She looked up at Ziggy and gave him another big, wonderful smile. Even though the rain was falling around them, her smile was like a ray of sunshine.

She was safe now. She was out of the cave completely. The team had accomplished what they had set out to do, even though things had not gone to plan at all. Zuri was out of danger, and it was clear just from her expression that she was full of gratitude.

Perhaps it was just the calming rain falling around them, but Ziggy was almost certain that he felt something. Something that he hadn't felt in countless years.

* * *

"Hey, Mr. Ziggy Wiggy?"

Sparks looked over at the Buizel merrily, chuckling softly to himself upon hearing that nickname again. He could tell that Ziggy didn't really like it, but Sparks found it endearing. He reminded himself to have a discussion with Rico about not spreading that nickname to the rest of the guild.

"Yes?" Ziggy replied to the Nidoran who was still being held in his arms. Once again, she had insisted on traveling with Ziggy and didn't want to be carried by anybody else.

The Raichu glanced ahead again, seeing the road coming up in the distance. The group of five were now walking back to the police outpost where Zuri's mother was anxiously waiting. They'd had Rico lead them back to where their supplies were, following the same path he had taken to avoid any further sinkholes. Then they had packed up and were now on the way back. It was still raining, but nobody in the group seemed to care. It felt nice as it washed away the dirt and dust that had gotten in all of their fur from the cave.

"How come you're a different colour?"

Sparks nearly tripped over his own paws. His eyes shot open wide and he looked back at Ziggy in concern. He saw out the corner of his eye that Kona, who was traveling next to him, was also looking back.

Ziggy was looking down at Zuri, an unreadable expression on his face. Sparks couldn't tell if he was upset or triggered by her question. She was just a cub, so she couldn't have meant anything bad by it, but of all the questions to ask.

"'Cus, like…" Zuri added, "There's Buizel in my school, and there's one in my class, and they're all orange."

Sparks cringed. He was about to step in and tactfully answer her, but then Ziggy replied instead.

"Well…" he spoke slowly, "It's…I was just born like this. Some…Pokémon are a different colour…"

There was grief in the Buizel's expression; Sparks could see it. But he had surprisingly kept it out of the tone of his voice. It was clear that Ziggy was dreading what Zuri would say next.

"Really?" she asked softly. When he nodded, she smiled broadly and said, "That's so cool!"

This time Ziggy nearly tripped. "Wh- Huh?'

"I wish I could be a different colour!" she chirped, "I'd wanna be all pink! Every part of me! Super bright hot pink!"

"Ah, well…" Ziggy said, trailing off and looking away with a conflicted expression. It didn't last long, though, as Zuri was soon talking to him about something else. She had been babbling to Ziggy constantly as they walked. It was nice to see that she had taken a shine to him, and perhaps he had to her as well.

In fact, she had kept his attention so much that Ziggy hadn't yet asked for his hoodie.

As the group reached the road itself and started the relatively short walk to the nearby police outpost, Sparks reflected on the crazy adventure they'd just had. Carmen had been pleased to hear him report back to her that the mission was successful, though that was mostly due to Sparks not mentioning Ziggy's involvement. He was going to tell her, no doubt about it, but he decided to wait and tell her in person.

This was definitely not what Sparks had planned when he suggested bringing Ziggy along, but it had worked out pretty well in the end. Hopefully Carmen wouldn't yell at him too much.

It didn't take long to reach the outpost, which was just a small square building with metal walls sitting next to the road. As the group approached, the rain finally decided to let up, and it had stopped entirely by the time they reached the building itself. The sky was still dark and cloudy, but Sparks was glad for the break in the rain.

"She's just around back," Sparks said to the group. He had radioed ahead to the outpost once they were on the surface and they had told him where Asha the Nidoqueen was waiting. Everyone, including Ziggy, nodded at this information and started to walk around to the back of the outpost.

"Mommy's here?" Zuri asked.

"I think so," Ziggy said.

"Mr. Ziggy do you know what she looks like? She's bigger than me and she's all blue!"

"Heh… I'm sure we'll know her when we see her."

While Ziggy and Zuri talked to one another again, Sparks reached out and grabbed Rico by his shoulder. He also used his tail to reach over behind Ziggy and hook gently into Kona's shoulder. The two Pokémon stopped and looked at him, but Sparks just put a paw to his muzzle and made the 'quiet' gesture. He tilted his head towards Ziggy, who was still walking ahead with Zuri. A moment later, the other two nodded in understanding.

The trio remained still while Ziggy continued ahead, unaware that he was walking on his own now. Once he turned the corner, Sparks and the others scurried over so they could furtively peek around.

Behind the building was a small patio area with a few benches of varying sizes for Pokémon to sit on. At the far end, on one of the larger benches, sat a very anxious-looking Nidoqueen. She was wringing her paws and fidgeting in her seat. Because the awning above her had protected her from the rain, it was easy to see even at a distance that she had been crying recently.

"Mommy!"

Asha's head shot up like it was spring-loaded. She looked over in the direction Zuri's voice had come from and her eyes lit up when she saw her cub cradled in Ziggy's paws. She immediately stood up and ran, much faster than a Nidoqueen could usually run, fresh tears streaming from her eyes. Ziggy shrunk back slightly, visibly intimidated by the much larger Pokémon charging directly at him. But then, Zuri squirmed out of his grasp and leapt out of his paws, jumping directly into the welcoming embrace of her mother.

"Zuri!" she cried.

"Mommy!"

"Oh, Zuri! My sweet baby girl! You're all right! Zuri, sweetheart, I thought I would never see you again!" Asha hugged her daughter tightly and nuzzled her affectionately. "Zuri…! Oh, Zuri…Please don't scare me like that again…"

"I'm sorry, mommy," Zuri said remorsefully.

"No, no, Zuri. You have nothing to be sorry for. It was an accident, I know. Ohhh, sweetheart, I'm just so happy you're safe. I was so scared, Zuri. I was so scared that I'd lost you…"

Ziggy had backed up a few steps from the Nidoqueen at first, but seeing the heartfelt reunion had made him pause before totally bolting. He was looking up at the two with a quiet, contemplative expression.

"I'm so glad you're safe, Zuri," Asha said.

"It's okay, mommy!" Zuri replied, "It was really scary down there, but then I got rescued!"

"Oh!" Asha suddenly perked up, "Oh goodness, of course!" She then looked down at Ziggy for the first time, which alone was enough to cause the Buizel to visibly flinch back. "Was it you?" she asked, "Were you the one who saved my daughter?"

Before Ziggy could do anything, whether it was to reply or to run away, Zuri answered for him. "Yeah! That's Mr. Ziggy Wiggy! He found me in the cave!"

Asha immediately closed the short distance between her and Ziggy and then got down on her knees so she wasn't towering over him. "You…You saved my daughter…"

"Uhh…" Ziggy murmured. Sparks could practically see the fight or flight response in his eyes alone. His body was all tensed up, looking like he was ready to bolt at a second's notice. But then he made eye contact with Zuri again, and then seemed to relax a little bit. "I…I, uh…"

"I was stuck in a dark cave," Zuri explained, "but then Mr. Ziggy came down and he found me, and he helped me get back out!"

"You saved my daughter…" Asha repeated for the third time, and then said, "I…I cannot possibly thank you enough…"

"Ah…" Ziggy spoke up, looking as if something had just occurred to him. "Um, well…" he murmured, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly, "I can't… I can't really take all the credit…I mean, I was…" His words trailed off, however, as he started to look around and he slowly came to the realization that he was by himself. Sparks and the others ducked behind the corner so they wouldn't be seen, but they saw Ziggy do a full 360 rotation on the spot. He wore a baffled expression as he looked for the other Pokémon that had been walking next to him just minutes before.

"You wonderful, wonderful Pokémon!" Asha gushed while Ziggy was looking away, startling him slightly. He turned back around to look at her and she said, "You are so brave…So courageous…You risked your life in that cave to rescue my daughter and I…I just…Saying 'thank you' simply doesn't do it justice…"

Ziggy was full on blushing at this point. "Wh-what? I, uh…" he stammered, "I was- I mean- but…" Behind his bashful expression, Sparks could see that he still looked pretty confused. Sparks wondered if it was still due to the disappearance of himself and the others, or perhaps because Ziggy found himself talking to a stranger…who wasn't immediately hating him because of his fur.

Asha shifted Zuri in her forelimbs so she could reach one out towards Ziggy. The Buizel recoiled at first, but then realized she was offering a pawshake, which he hesitatingly accepted. "What was your name?" she asked, "Mr. Ziggy?"

"Erm…J-just 'Ziggy'…"

"Thank you!" she said with a tearful smile, "Thank you so much. You're amazing. You're such an amazing Pokémon. I was so scared that I had lost my little Zuri but…you brought her back. Thank you from the bottom of my heart…"

"…Uh…Y-you're welcome…" Ziggy murmured unsurely.

"Oh!" she then exclaimed, suddenly standing up straight, "Oh, of course. How could I forget?" Asha then turned around and ran back to where she had been sitting, where she picked up something she had left on the bench. When she brought it back, she opened it up to reveal that it was a purse. With still trembling claws, she fished out and counted six crisp banknotes, which she immediately gave to Ziggy.

"Wh…?" Ziggy murmured as he fumbled with the bills, nearly dropping them. He looked up at Asha in confusion. "What…?"

"I will never be able to properly express my gratitude," she said, "but this will have to do, I'm afraid. I'm sorry I could not give any more."

Ziggy looked down at the money for a moment, and then his eyes shot open wide. "But-"

"Please, Ziggy," she interrupted, "I don't want to hear any modesty. You are _wonderful_ and you deserve every last Poké I've given you." She then hugged Zuri again and said, "Nothing is too steep a price for what you've done."

"Aw, mommy!" Zuri hugged back. "He was really nice! And funny! Can I see him again sometime?"

"Oh, I'm sure we can stop by the guild one of these days, sweetheart."

"Yay!" Zuri cheered.

"But right now, we really should get you home. You must be starving, and you're all wet from the rain, and you're muddy from the cave. Let's go, okay? The police are going to take us back to our house. Say goodbye to Ziggy, okay? And tell him 'thank you'."

Zuri looked down at Ziggy and smiled brightly. "Bye, Mr. Ziggy!" she said with a wave of her paw, "Thank you for rescuing me! It was nice to meet you!"

Ziggy looked up at her and slowly rose one of his paws to wave back. He still looked quite stunned by what was happening.

"Thank you again," Asha said to Ziggy, bowing her head in thanks. She then promptly turned around and carried Zuri off around the side of the building. The reunited parent and child could still be heard happily talking to one another as they disappeared around the corner, leaving Ziggy standing alone on the patio area.

"Well, that was nice!" Sparks proclaimed as he walked up behind Ziggy, who yelped in surprise and wheeled around to face the Raichu.

"S-Sparks!" he stammered, "Where did you…?"

"She seemed really happy," Kona commented.

"Thanks Captain Obvious," Rico remarked with a snicker.

"This was _your_ rescue, buddy," Sparks said, "You found her. You kept her safe while we evacuated the tunnels. We thought you deserved all the praise for today's work."

Ziggy looked as if Sparks had just claimed he was an alien from outer space. "Wh…What? What're you… I'm not…I didn't…"

Sparks gave Ziggy a pat on the shoulder and said, "Don't worry about it, Zig. The important thing is that you should feel proud of yourself. Even though you going into the dungeon was an accident, you were very brave while we were in there, and you were very helpful in getting Zuri up here safely. Those aren't accomplishments to be taken lightly."

"I…" Ziggy murmured. He had gotten over the initial shock of things by now and was just giving Sparks a perplexed look. "But, Sparks…I'm not…"

"It doesn't matter," Sparks said, shaking his head, "You did great today, Ziggy. That's all that matters. And you made two Pokémon smile."

Ziggy glanced off in the direction Zuri and Asha had left. He didn't say anything. He just stood there silently looking with a reflective look in his face. His silence told volumes that his voice never could. Sparks could see it in his eyes. He wasn't smiling yet, but he wasn't frowning either.

"How much?" Rico asked, stepping in closer and looking down at the stack of bills in Ziggy's paws. Sparks examined them as well, seeing that all of them were the same type.

"600 Poké!" Sparks remarked, "Not bad! Not bad at all."

"600…?" Ziggy murmured, looking down at the money in his paws, "But…She…I-I can't…"

"Aw, don't give me that, bud," Sparks said, "I've already been over this with Rico and Terry. She was _more_ than happy to give you that money, and she'd be offended if you tried to give it back. That money is in exchange for the safety of her daughter's life, and it's just her way of trying to say thank you."

"Um…O-okay…" Ziggy murmured, though he still didn't seem keen on the idea, "Should I give it to you, or…?"

"Well, if you remember what I told you, half of it goes to the guild. You can just give it to Carmen when you see her...or, maybe I should do that. Either way, that leaves 300 for you."

"M-me…?!"

"Yeah, we don't mind," Kona said with a smile, "Sparks, Rico and I didn't come on this mission for profit; it was an emergency. We think you could make more use out of it than us anyway."

Ziggy still wore a troubled expression, and Sparks figured he was going to continue to protest and insist that the money did not belong with him. Before he did, though, he perked up as if he had just gotten an idea. "Wait…" he murmured, "300…?"

"Yeah," Sparks replied, "300 for the guild and 300 for you."

"Uh…" Ziggy looked up at Sparks, and then at the other two and said, "You're…Y-you're _sure_ you guys are all okay with this? With me and…the money?"

Sparks nodded, and he saw that Kona and Rico nodded as well.

"You're _super sure_?"

"Yes!" Sparks said with a laugh, "It's yours."

"Um…Well, uh… Okay then," Ziggy said with a nod. He then separated the bills into two groups of three and gave three of the 100-Poké bills to Sparks.

"You want me to hang onto the guild's share? Sure, I'll do that," he said, taking the bills.

Ziggy paused for a moment and glanced down at the remaining money in his paws. Then, without a word, he extended his paw and held out the three bills towards Sparks as well.

Sparks gave him a puzzled look. "Huh?"

Ziggy simply said, "Here."

"What? Ziggy, that's _yours_. We just discussed this."

"I know," Ziggy said with a nod, "And…I'm giving it to you."

Sparks just tilted his head and gave Ziggy an even more confused look. "What? Why? What do you mean?"

"It's 300 Poké," Ziggy said, as if that was explanation enough.

"300 Poké, yeah…?"

"That's how much it was, wasn't it?"

Sparks furrowed his brow. "How much _what_ was?"

"How much…you paid the Machamp…"

At first Sparks didn't understand, but then recognition hit him like a Hyper Beam. He gasped softly. "Wait…You mean…?"

Ziggy nodded. "From when we first met…"

"You still remember that?"

The Buizel frowned, almost looking offended by that remark. "Of _course_ I do, Sparks! That was the day…th-the day my life…y'know…"

"Oh gosh…" Sparks murmured. Of all things, he had not expected that unpleasant moment to be brought up. "Well, Ziggy I appreciate it, but…I just did that to get you out of that bad situation. I never expected you to be debted to me for that."

"I know…" Ziggy said, "But…I want to pay you back anyway."

"Ziggy, c'mon. I don't-"

"Please?"

Sparks regarded the Buizel silently for a moment. He tried to think of some other way to politely decline, or to convince Ziggy to keep his well-deserved cash. He paused, though, when he thought back to what he had literally just said a minute ago. Refusing to take Ziggy's offer would just make him a hypocrite. He looked into Ziggy's eyes and saw resolve and nothing more. He didn't look pained to be losing the money. He didn't seem regretful. Just like Asha, he _wanted_ the money to be taken.

"Well…" Sparks eventually said, "If you're sure?" When Ziggy nodded, Sparks shrugged and reached out to take the money from him. "Thank you, Ziggy. That's very generous of you."

Once the money left Ziggy's paws, it looked as if a weight had been taken off of his shoulders. Just a small weight, but Sparks could still see the difference. Once his paws were free of the money, Ziggy just held his forelimb with the opposite paw and glanced off to the side awkwardly.

"All right then," Sparks said as he put the money into his backpack, "Should we get home? Our ride's probably waiting nearby. Ziggy, you want your hoodie?"

Ziggy started glancing at his surroundings, and Sparks could see that familiar look of agoraphobia start to return. He looked back at Sparks and nodded gratefully.

Sparks chuckled softly as he rummaged through his backpack, where he had stashed Ziggy's hoodie. "Carmen's gonna love hearing this report…" he remarked.

"You want me to come with you when you give it to her?" Kona asked.

"Nah, I'd rather do this one on one."

"I just wanna eat," Rico said, "It's almost dinnertime! I'm starved!"

"You just had an apple!" Kona retorted.

"Hey, I gotta have my post-adventure meal! It's like tradition or whatever!" He paused for a moment and then added in a quieter voice, "And I wanna see how Terry's doing. He's still sick, so I'll probably bring him some celebration food anyway…"

"Awww…" Kona cooed.

By this point, Ziggy had put on his hoodie and covered himself up. Sparks had to admit that he was proud of how much time Ziggy had spent today without it on, even if there was nobody around besides Zuri and Asha to see it. Now that the distraction of their adventure was gone, he noticed that Ziggy was now nervously eyeing the police outpost that they were standing next to. None of the officers inside had come out while they had been out here, but both he and Ziggy knew that there were in fact police officers inside. Sparks idly wondered if Ziggy had had many run-ins with the police during his time on the streets.

"Hey," he said when he noticed the Buizel start to look a little agitated.

"Huh?"

"Good job today," he said, "No matter what happens or what anybody says, you did a great job today in a lot of different ways. When we get back to the guild, I want you to feel proud of yourself."

Ziggy blushed a little and glanced away. "I…O-okay…" he murmured.

"Heh… Ready to head back?"

"Uh, Sparks?" he spoke up, "Is…Is Carmen gonna be mad at me?"

"No, no!" Sparks replied, shaking his head, "No, not at all!"

"Oh," Ziggy said, relief clearly evident in his voice.

"She's gonna be mad at _me_!"


	15. The Perfect Night

Chapter 15 \- **The Perfect Night**

Sparks had overslept.

He knew it the moment he opened his eyes. The bright light of day was streaming through his window, looking nothing at all like the glow of a morning sunrise. The question was just how much had he overslept. Had he missed breakfast? The morning briefing?

With a groan and a stretch, Sparks heaved himself out of bed. Oversleeping was never a good thing for anybody, but sometimes he just couldn't help it. Sometimes stress just got to be too much, or the nightmares would keep him awake all night. And, though it happened far less often these days, sometimes he just couldn't find the strength to wake up.

But not today. Sparks reasoned that he had just been extra tired and had slept through his usual wakeup time. It was a new year, and things had been going well.

Sparks stood up and stretched once more. His grumbling belly was telling him that he had indeed missed breakfast and now it was angry at him. As he looked around his room for his badge and scarf to put on, something didn't seem quite right. There was something strange about the way his room was lit up.

When Sparks turned around and looked out the window in his room, he gasped in delight. It was snowing outside, and the lawn outside his window was blanketed in a smooth, pristine layer of untouched snowfall. Quite a lot of snowflakes were falling from the light grey clouds, but at such a gentle pace that it was absolutely gorgeous to look at. It was the first snowfall of the season.

Excited and suddenly full of a lot more energy, Sparks immediately headed out the door of his room. Snow was one of those things that always made him feel like a cub, no matter how old he got. He looked forward to snowfall every year, and this year was no different, especially since things had been going relatively well lately.

After the brief fallout of Carmen finding out that Ziggy had entered the MD, thoughts for the whole guild had quickly turned to congratulations. The young Buizel had gotten plenty of praise from his peers, and though he seemed bashful he did seem to genuinely appreciate the compliments.

Christmas had been a fun celebration. It had brought Sparks a sense of joy he did not often feel when he snuck into Ziggy's room on Christmas morning, and then gently woke him up so he could deliver his present. Ziggy had been emotionally shaken just from the fact of receiving a gift in the first place, and he was very appreciative of the warm mittens Sparks had gotten him. Christmas dinner and the party afterwards had been a fun event, and so had New Year's Eve. Sparks had taken Ziggy out to see the fireworks.

It was now January 5th, less than a week into the new year. Things had somewhat gotten back to normal after the heyday of the holiday season. The active team was all together and working on jobs for the public, Ziggy was doing his chores around the guild, and Danika was still locked in her dungeon upstairs. Dante had returned, as promised, and was now staying with the guild for a couple of days. Sparks had delighted in seeing Ziggy's eyes light up the moment the Lucario stepped into the common room once again.

Sparks knocked on the door to Ziggy's room and called out the Buizel's name. Ziggy didn't tend to sleep in, but he also wasn't keen on leaving his room without seeing Sparks first. A moment later, he heard Ziggy reply. "Sparks…?" His voice sounded quiet, only just loud enough to be heard through the closed door.

"Can I come in, buddy?"

"Uh huh…"

"Cool. Sorry for sleeping in," Sparks said as he used his badge to open Ziggy's door. He stepped inside and said, "Did you see? Did you see outside? It's snowing!"

Sparks then paused once he was fully in the room as he looked over at Ziggy. The Buizel was standing up on his bed, his paws resting on the sill of the window that was right above it. He was just tall enough to be able to look out the window, which he was doing in silence. It looked like Ziggy was watching the snowfall, which Sparks could definitely relate to.

"Pretty, huh?" Sparks asked as he walked over to the bed. Ziggy didn't reply and when Sparks got closer, he noticed the Buizel's expression. Ziggy looked positively mesmerized by the sight of the snow outside. His eyes were wide and Sparks could swear there was a literal twinkle in them. His mouth hung open just a bit while he breathed quietly, remaining silent and unmoving save for the tiny movement of his pupils.

"Ziggy?"

Still he didn't move. He seemed spellbound by the snowfall, hypnotized and rooted to the spot by the mere sight of it. It almost looked like he was watching something never before seen by a Pokémon's eyes.

"Ziggy?" Sparks again prodded gently, "What's up?"

"It's…" Ziggy whispered, "I-it's…incredible…"

Sparks glanced up at the window, tall enough to be able to see out of it without standing on the bed. "Yeah, it's quite a sight isn't it?"

"I've…I've never…" Ziggy murmured.

"Never what?" Sparks asked, "You're not gonna tell me you've never seen snow before. That's impossible."

"No, I've seen it before…" Ziggy replied. He was silent for a moment before saying in a slow, soft tone, "I've just…never seen it like this…"

"What do you mean?"

Finally, Ziggy turned and gave Sparks a very solemn look. "Well, usually…snow is a really bad thing for me."

To say Sparks was confused by that remark would be an understatement. He gave Ziggy a baffled look for a moment, but soon his expression lit up as he realized what Ziggy meant. "Ohh…"

Ziggy frowned. "Snow means…cold…cold nights…wet, cold snow in the spots I usually sleep…cold paws while I try to sneak around and run…and it makes the mud even colder on my fur…"

"Oh goodness, I didn't even think of that…" Sparks remarked. It made sense to him now, and it was a sobering thought. This was the first time Ziggy was seeing snow without it being a deadly threat. Sparks figured he had probably never taken the time to just stop and _look_ at the snow.

"It's…really nice looking," Ziggy said, having gone back to looking out the window.

"Oh yeah," Sparks said, "Snow is wonderful. Always brings a smile to my face. But it's especially nice when you can watch it somewhere warm and cozy."

"Y-yeah…" Ziggy fidgeted a little with his paws and said, "It's kinda weird…There's still a part of me that's, like, tryin' to tell me that I'm in trouble 'cus there's snow…"

"It's baked into your brain," Sparks said, "Just try to ignore it and enjoy the spectacle. Y'know, there's a bigger window down in the common room…Did you get breakfast yet?"

"Uh…No…"

"Yeah, I slept in. Sorry about that," Sparks said, "We missed it so we'll have to go beg Liz for something, heh… C'mon, let's go."

Ziggy didn't reply right away. His attention was still trained on the sight of the snow outside of his window. After Sparks reached over and tapped him on the shoulder, Ziggy said, "R-right. Sure."

As Ziggy followed Sparks out of his room and over to the common room, Sparks said, "We can go out in the snow today if you want. We can go out in the courtyard, or if you want we can go in the front yard where there's more room."

"Outside…?" Ziggy asked, a hint of trepidation in his voice. Sparks wasn't sure if it was because of the snow and his preconceived notions of it, or because of going outside entirely.

The two entered the common room. As Sparks expected, it was deserted save for the remnants of the breakfast they had missed on the table. "Yeah," he said in answer to Ziggy, "You've got your hoodie and your brand new mittens, so you should be warm enough. We could build a Snow-Pika!"

"…What's _that_?"

Sparks chuckled as he and Ziggy sat down at the end of the table, where two empty plates sat. He knew that Liz would drop by soon enough to clean up the table before she headed out on a job, and Sparks was hoping she would be bringing leftovers with her.

"So, you got your list of chores for today?" Sparks asked him.

"Yeah, it's in my room," Ziggy answered. Sparks was happy to say that Ziggy had settled in quite nicely to his new position as 'errand boy' for the guild. With every passing day, he became more comfortable with the tasks that were being asked of him. They were still refraining from giving him tasks that took him outside, but he almost always did what he was told to do without question. Sometimes he would get a little nervous or anxious about something, and sometimes he needed Sparks' help to get him through his anxiety, but otherwise he was doing pretty well.

"More Danika help?" Sparks asked.

"More Danika help," Ziggy answered, "But, also…Carmen wants me to help Dante with something today."

"Oh, really?"

"Uh huh…" Ziggy said with a nod. He paused for a minute and then looked up at Sparks with what could almost be described as a hopeful expression. "Do you think…he'll tell me another story?"

"Haha!" Sparks laughed, "I'm sure he'd be happy to if you ask him nicely."

"Y-yeah…?"

"You really seem to like him, huh?"

Ziggy looked away and bashfully fidgeted with his paws. "S-sorta…"

Sparks chuckled. "He's nice, isn't he?"

"He's…really cool," Ziggy said. There was just a hint of cublike wonder in his voice, something Sparks didn't often hear from the Buizel. "The stories he tells are…incredible. He can probably do _anything_!"

"Heh, sometimes it seems that way… I think all of us strive to be like him in some way or another…"

A moment later, the door opened and Liz stepped inside with a tray, ready to clean off the table. She caught sight of the two and said, "_There_ ya are! Y'all are missin' a perfectly good snow day!"

"Liiiiiiz," Sparks playfully whined, "Where's my coffeeeee?"

"It's cold, ya Snorlax! That's what happens when ya sleep in. You know that!"

Liz approached the table and started picking up a few dishes. Ziggy had stood up and was already starting to help her without needing to be asked.

"Don'tcha worry, I'll warm it up," she said to Sparks, "I know it fuels ya."

"Thanks, Liz. Anything good for leftovers?"

"Berries are prob'ly your best bet today. Maybe have a big lunch later." She then turned to Ziggy, took a few plates from him, and said, "How 'bout you, hon? Why don't I make ya some hot chocolate tonight?"

Ziggy looked up at her and said, "What's 'hot chocolate'…?"

* * *

In the end, Sparks managed to convince Ziggy to come out and play in the front yard of the guild. The flat, open lawn was surrounded by hedges so there was still somewhat a sense of privacy, and Ziggy felt at ease because he was wearing his hoodie anyway for warmth. The yard was still open for Pokémon to come in and put something on the requests board, which did make Ziggy noticeably nervous, but he always just turned away whenever somebody came in. Nobody ever bothered them directly.

Ziggy had been quite hesitant to venture out into the snow. Sparks could see just how hard-wired his brain was to associate snow with danger, but his warm winter clothing seemed to help. Before long Ziggy was trudging through the snow, catching snowflakes on his tongue, and making snow angels. Sparks had showed him how to make a snow Pika, and then he'd made one on his own. It was almost laughably lopsided, but Sparks couldn't deny it had charm.

Sparks was now standing under the guild's awning, watching from the side as Ziggy wandered around and just explored the snow-covered area. The Buizel was walking along the hedges, seeing how the snow accumulated on its branches, and running his paws along it to cause the snow to fall. In some ways, it kind of _was_ like Ziggy had never seen snow before.

He belatedly realized that he was like a parent, sitting on the sidelines and watching his cub play in the yard.

The sound of extra pawsteps in the snow grabbed his attention, and he saw a rather miserable-looking Lombre wander in through the gates holding a piece of paper. Grass-types generally didn't like the snow, so Sparks didn't blame him for looking grumpy. While the Lombre went over to put his request on the board, Sparks worriedly looked back at Ziggy.

He was still looking at the snow on the hedges. He hadn't even noticed.

Working at the guild had definitely had a positive impact on Ziggy. Perhaps it was the sense of duty that gave him a better feeling of belonging. Sparks had heard him say in the past that he didn't feel like he deserved to be sheltered in the guild, so maybe that was changing now. Furthermore, it seemed the simple act of having something to do helped to keep his mind from going in circles. He was less worried about a lot of things now.

Going outside was still the big obstacle they were trying to overcome. Sparks was happy Ziggy would still agree to go on short walks from time to time, albeit in his hoodie, but it would be a long while before he would be able to go anywhere near the busy downtown or the marketplace.

Sparks glanced up at the skies. The snow was still falling, and it didn't look like it was going to stop any time soon. The days immediately following a snowfall were usually some of the guild's busiest days. While it was beautiful, snow caused a lot of problems for a lot of Pokémon, so the guild was there to help. Sparks knew he was going to have to help pick up the slack and take on some tasks that he usually wouldn't do, considering his position in the guild. He would be spending more time away from Ziggy until the snow melted, so he hoped the Buizel could handle it.

After a few minutes of just watching the snow, Sparks crunched his way across to where Ziggy was. "Hey, bud," he said, "How're you doing? Not getting too cold?"

"No," Ziggy replied.

"That's good. Whatcha lookin' at?"

Ziggy showed him some little patterns he had made in the powdery snow with his paws and tail. Sparks stood behind him, watching and listening. He delighted in seeing the Buizel enjoying something, even something as small as this. Sparks kept an eye out to make sure Ziggy wasn't shivering. He had become quite aware that Water-types had a resistance to the chills but, as Ziggy himself had pointed out, freezing temperatures like this were something else entirely.

Sparks then yelped loudly as something cold and wet struck him in the side of the head. He winced as it stung slightly, and turned to look behind him. Ziggy had heard him shout and was now looking around in fright.

Standing in the middle of the courtyard were Terry and Rico. Rather, Rico was standing while Terry was sitting. Both Pokémon had freshly-made snowballs held in their paws and both were giving Sparks a devious look. A split second later, Terry reared back and tossed his snowball right at Sparks, who held up his forelimbs to block it just in time.

"Ha! Ya almost got him again!" Rico said while laughing.

"I told you his reflexes were too good!" Terry replied with a giggle.

Sparks brushed the snow off of his limbs and shoulders. He caught a glimpse of Ziggy beside him. Ziggy no longer looked frightened now that he had seen Terry and Rico, but now just looked confused. Sparks then looked back at the pair of explorers and was about to hurl a playful insult at them, when he saw that Rico had already thrown his snowball.

Even with his trained reflexes, Sparks didn't have time to block the snowball before it struck Ziggy in his chest, causing him to yelp.

"Hey!" Sparks shouted, "What's the big idea, Rico? What's wrong with you?"

"Rico…!" Terry was giving the Riolu a surprised and concerned look. Rico had been wearing a smug expression after hitting his target, but it immediately melted away to a frown.

Sparks grumbled loudly and turned his attention back to Ziggy. The Buizel just looked more confused than anything, looking down at his chest as if he was trying to figure out what had just happened. "You okay, bud? Did it hurt?" Sparks asked as he leaned down to brush the snow off of his hoodie.

"Uh…N-no, I don't think so…" Ziggy murmured.

In the background, Sparks could hear Terry talking. "Rico, what did you do that for?" he said in a voice that wasn't angry or scolding, but was certainly not positive by any means, "Why'd you hit Ziggy?"

"Ah…I, uh…" Rico muttered.

Sparks finished cleaning off the remnants of the snowball, and Ziggy just looked up at him with questioning eyes. "It's a snowball," Sparks explained, "It's just a way for cubs and _dumb_ teenagers to have fun in the snow. Young Pokémon sometimes have 'snowball fights' with each other."

"O-oh…" Ziggy replied.

The sound of pawsteps crunching in the snow caught Sparks' ear, and he and Ziggy turned to see the other two walking over to them. Rico looked incredibly remorseful. "Hey, Ziggy, I'm sorry. I'm really sorry, that was dumb of me. I just threw it without thinking. I've been having snowball fights since I was a tiny cub, so…"

"Uh…I-it's okay," Ziggy replied.

Sparks gave Rico the stink eye, and Rico wilted under it. He had just managed to convince Ziggy to go outside and enjoy the snow. Ziggy had been having such a nice, peaceful time too.

"Sorry…" Rico said again with a big frown. Sparks saw him cast a remorseful gaze at Terry as well. The Eevee looked like he wanted to be upset at Rico, but could only manage a bit of pity for him. Sparks knew it could be hard to be mad at one's girlfriend or boyfriend even if they messed something up, but he also knew how badly it felt to be the one to mess up in front of one's girlfriend or boyfriend.

"It's okay…" Ziggy repeated, "Just, um…Please don't do it again…?" His voice got smaller and smaller as his request came out, to the point where the last word was almost inaudible.

"Of course, of course. I won't, Ziggy. I promise," Rico said.

Sparks sighed softly and tried to shake off the negative feelings. It was a small incident of poor judgement. No need to dwell on it. "So, what're you two doing back so early?" Sparks asked.

"Client cancelled our job due to the snow," Terry answered, "So we came back to pick something off the request board."

"Ah, yeah. That tends to happen," Sparks said with a nod, "You guys prepared for the big workload we're gonna get?"

"Oh yeah. We're totally ready!" Rico said, regaining some of his bravado.

"You sure? You seemed a bit overwhelmed last year," Sparks remarked. During the previous winter, Terry and Rico had only been recruits for a couple months.

"Yeah, we were newbies back then! We're so much better now!" Rico retorted, "Right, Ter?"

Terry chuckled and said, "We're stronger than ever!"

"We're the best team we can possibly be!"

"Heehee…" Terry giggled, then leaned over and gave Rico a quick kiss on the cheek. "Love ya!"

Rico immediately blushed and looked away from Sparks. "Heh… Love you too…"

"You two are just the cutest, you know that?" Sparks said.

"Hey, c'mon now…" Rico murmured in a quiet voice, scuffing his paw in the snow.

"You've grown really close to one another, especially over the holidays. At Christmas and New Year's, I swear I've never seen two more snuggly Pokémon."

"Heh, well…Blame his soft fur," Rico said.

"Heehee! He's the best boyfriend!" Terry proclaimed with a smile, "I wish we'd started dating sooner. I was missing out this whole time!"

"Well, you two'd better get going if you're gonna take another job. The sun goes down a lot earlier now, remember."

"Yeah…" Rico replied. He then perked up and said, "Oh! Hey, speaking of which…Uh, we were gonna go for a walk in the snow after the sun sets. You wanna come with us?"

"Me?" Sparks replied in confusion, "You want me to come?"

"Sure! We're gonna ask everyone on the team. The more the merrier!"

"Oh! Oh, well then sure. I'll tag along," Sparks said. He chuckled to himself for thinking he'd just been asked to be a third wheel on a date between the two.

"Great!" Terry cheered, "I haven't had a nice walk in the night snow in a few years now! I never get the chance!"

Sparks then turned to Ziggy. "You wanna come, bud?"

"Huh?" Ziggy replied, "A walk…at night…?"

"You can wear your hoodie, of course. And it'll blend in with the night too!"

"Uhh…" Ziggy fidgeted his paws and looked down at the snowy ground nervously, "We're…We're not gonna go…to the…?"

Sparks knew what Ziggy was asking and forwarded the question himself. "Where are we going?"

"Probably around the perimeter road. Maybe along the cliffs if someone can bring a lantern," Rico said.

"So, not to the market," Sparks said to Ziggy.

"Um…I guess so…" Ziggy said quietly, "I-if you're coming with us…"

"Cool!" Rico said with a thumbs up, "We'll head out at about 6 or 6:30."

"Sounds good!" Sparks said with a nod.

"C'mon, Rico! Let's go get another job from the board now!" Terry then said, giving Rico a nudge in the side.

"Sounds like a plan, sweetheart!" Rico said with a grin, "Let's go!"

With that, the two young Pokémon ran off through the snow. Laughter filled the courtyard as they raced one another over to the board, where they stood for a few moments before tearing off one of the job postings.

Sparks grinned. "Heh heh… They may have only 'officially' started dating a couple months ago, but those two have been dating for years without even realizing it…"

As Terry and Rico ran out of the gate, Ziggy turned up to Sparks with a quizzical look. "What do you mean…?"

"Nothing," Sparks said, shaking his head, "We should probably head inside. You've still got chores to do."

"Okay," Ziggy said, and then obediently began making his way back over to the guild's employee entrance. Sparks followed after him.

* * *

Several hours later, night had fallen on the bustling Radiant City. It was still snowing just as much as it had been in the morning, and the snowbanks were slowly starting to pile up.

But, while nighttime had arrived, darkness did not entirely join it. With the land covered in the bright white blanket of snow, coupled with the light from torches and streetlights, a mysterious orange-yellow glow was cast across the land. Even the sky didn't seem as pitch black as it usually did during the night. It created a strange yet beautiful landscape, quite different from the one seen during the day.

Six Pokémon were walking alongside the perimeter road that encircled the city. Their paws crunched through the snow, which was thankfully not yet quite deep enough to make walking troublesome. Terry and Rico were at the front of the pack. Only four Pokémon, including Sparks and Ziggy, had accepted their invitation to go on a walk, but spirits were high despite how small the group was. To Sparks' left was Kona, and just in front of them but behind the couple was Lupe.

And, to Sparks' right, there was Ziggy. The little Buizel was bundled up in his hoodie and wearing his new mittens. He looked quite snug under his warm layers, which Sparks was happy to see since it had gotten chillier after the sun had set.

There weren't many Pokémon out in the snow. Most were probably huddled up at home by the fireplace, drinking hot cocoa. This left the streets of the usually-bustling city rather calm and quiet. There was a strange sort of stillness in the air, despite the plentiful amount of snowflakes still falling to the ground.

When he was out on walks Ziggy was usually looking all around himself, keeping on the lookout for threats. Today, though, Sparks noticed that Ziggy's gaze kept drifting upwards towards the falling snow.

"It sure is pretty…" he remarked.

"Yeah…" Ziggy replied softly, "Real pretty…"

"I love the way the snow looks," Lupe said, glancing back at them, "I just wish it was a little warmer, heh heh…" The Vulpix was wearing a scarf, a toque and mittens on all four of her paws.

"It's nice…" Ziggy said, "I…really never realized how…nice it is…"

"I love doing this!" Terry said, apparently having heard their conversation. He stopped walking and turned around to face the others, with Rico doing so as well a moment after. "I've always loved snow at night. It's amazing to watch!"

"Yeah," Sparks agreed, "It's something that doesn't tend to cross your mind."

"It's the _best_ when it's still a fresh snowfall, like it is tonight!" Terry grinned as he glanced around at the scenery. "I'm so happy I got a chance to do this. I'm having so much fun!"

Rico was smiling as he looked over at his boyfriend. It was uncertain whether his rosy cheeks were from the cold air or from seeing Terry look so happy. "Glad we could make it happen," he said.

"Aw, I'm so glad I can share this with you, Rico!"

"Heh…" Rico murmured, rubbing the back of his neck. He was only wearing a toque and a small backpack, which he said he had packed a few snacks into.

The group continued walking after that, moving further along the perimeter road. They started approaching the more residential side of the city, which meant that the atmosphere only got quieter. At one point Sparks glanced over at Ziggy, who seemed to be intrigued by the puffs of air created by his breaths.

"Let me know if you're cold," Sparks said.

"I'm fine," he replied.

Sparks was about to say something else, but was interrupted by the sound of a sudden sneeze. He glanced over and saw Rico rubbing his muzzle with his paw. "S'cuse me," he said.

Lupe giggled. "Well, that was cute."

"Hey, c'mon. Riolu aren't cute," he retorted, sticking his tongue out at her.

"That might be the dumbest thing you've ever said," Lupe remarked.

"I gotta agree with her on this one," Terry said, giving Rico a playful nudge.

"_You're_ the cute one…"

"Aww, flatterer…" Terry giggled, and then leaned in to kiss Rico on the cheek. Rico appeared particularly flustered by the display of affection.

The Riolu then cleared his throat and addressed the group as a whole. "Say! Why don't we fire up Kona's lantern and go walk along the ridge?" He pointed off into the distance, and Sparks followed his paw. There was an area where the land rose up slightly, with a couple paths and staircases leading up to the top of it. From the top, one could get a great view of the cliffs that bordered the city to the north, as well as the city itself.

There were no light sources up on the ridge, which wouldn't be a problem as Kona was carrying a lantern. "Sounds good to me," Kona said. When there were no objections, he opened the small latch on the side of the lantern to open it up, and then held it out towards Lupe. "Would you do the honours?"

Lupe grinned, breathed in, and then exhaled a small Ember attack. The tiny stream of fire slipped through the latch and immediately illuminated the lamp, while keeping Kona's paws safe from harm.

"Excellent flame control as always," Sparks remarked.

"Oh stop, you'll make me blush," Lupe replied.

"Yeah, that's Rico's job tonight," Terry said, earning a small laugh from everyone.

Once the lamp was illuminated, the group walked forward a little more until they came across one of the trailheads that would lead them up to the top of the ridge. They chose to take this one as it had a staircase, which would reduce the risk of slipping on the snow while climbing up a hill. As they walked down the path, the city lights faded into the distance and the darkness of night encroached around them. The sounds of the city, what few there had been, also dampened to a barely noticeable din.

There were a couple scattered trees along the hill and the ridge, which caught the light of the lantern and created some dazzling light patterns. Their lantern was thankfully quite bright and lit up the area around them nicely. Its light caused all of the snowflakes to glow like falling embers.

Ziggy was walking in front of Sparks, but he kept pausing to look at things along the way. "C'mon bud, keep up," Sparks gently encouraged, "We don't wanna get left behind."

"Sorry," he apologized, "It's just…really really beautiful up here…"

"I know. Radiant City wears the snow well."

The Buizel turned back to look at him. "…Thank you for bringing me with you," he said.

"Aw, it's no problem bud. I'm just glad to see you having a good time."

Before long they reached the stairs that led up the steeper part of the ridge, and all six of them carefully made their way up. It seemed like nobody else was out on the ridge, leaving them alone in the dark and the silence. It was getting pretty chilly, especially considering they were going nearer to the ocean, and Sparks was wishing he had worn something more than a scarf and mittens. Ziggy didn't seem too bothered by the cold, though. It was amazing what a change in perspective could do.

"Whoaa! Look at that view!" Lupe exclaimed once they had reached the top of the ridge. Everyone turned around and followed her gaze back to the city. From this slightly elevated location, they could see quite a bit more of the city. All of the lights from the various buildings and streetlights, whether they were electric or simply a burning torch, all lit up the city in a dazzling array.

"Radiant City has never looked so…radiant," Kona said with a chuckle.

"D'you think they named the city during winter?"

"It'd make sense, I suppose."

They kept walking further along the ridge, until they reached what seemed to be the highest point. There were no trees at this particular spot, allowing for the best view that the night would permit. The group slowed down so they could appreciate the view for a minute.

"What an amazing sight!" Terry commented, "Isn't it great, Rico?"

"Yeah…Yeah i-it is…"

Sparks glanced over at the two. The fire from the lantern was lighting up Terry's fluffy fur in a dim orange glow, almost giving him the appearance of a Jolteon-Flareon fusion. However, he was more paying attention to Rico. The Riolu had been quiet ever since they had started their climb up the ridge. He seemed uncharacteristically nervous or uneasy about something. Sparks had caught the brief stammer in his voice a moment ago.

He wasn't sure, though. Maybe Rico had just taken notice of Terry and his orange glow as well. Sparks did have to admit it was a good look on him.

"It's been a good holiday season," Kona commented, "Even if we _did_ almost get lost in a dungeon that one time."

"I'm still so jealous that I missed out on that!" Terry replied.

"Haha! Poor Rico had to go in without you."

"Yeah…I wish I coulda backed you up, hon!"

Rico nodded. "It…wasn't the same without you."

Sparks frowned as he watched the group converse with each other. Something was definitely up with Rico. He wasn't acting like his usual self. Sparks couldn't figure out why, though. It had been his idea to come up here on the ridge in the first place.

"Hey!" Terry exclaimed, "I just realized something! Rico…This ridge…Isn't this where we completed our first job for the guild?"

Rico looked over at him and nodded. "Yeah…It is."

"A cub ran away, and we went looking for him," Terry said, "Rico suggested we look up here, and that's where we found him. Oh boy, we were so happy when we found him. Our first job together, as a team, and as guildmembers! I'll always remember that day…"

"Yup…" Rico said, nodding, "This is a special spot for us. That's why I wanted to come up here." He started walking across the snow over towards where Terry was standing. "And that's why…Well, I can't think of a better place for this."

Terry tilted his head. "Hm? For what?"

"We're up here on this ridge, the first of our many adventures together…The snow is beautiful, the city is beautiful…and you're beautiful, Terry. I'm…really glad you came up here with me…and I'm glad we're here surrounded by some of our closest friends."

"Wh…What? Rico, what're you talking about…?"

Rico was now standing directly in front of the Eevee. "Terry, I…" he spoke, "I have something important to ask you…"

Terry's eyes opened a little wider. In the background, Lupe quietly gasped.

"I…I know we're still young. I know we maybe might be too young to do this, but..." Rico smiled nervously and rubbed the back of his neck. "But, Terry…I've never been more certain of anything. I love you, Terry. I've loved you for a long time."

"I…I love you too, Rico…" Terry whispered, a rosy blush adorning his cheeks, "But…wh-what are you…?"

Rico got down on both of his knees, ignoring the chilly snow. Lupe gasped again. Rico reached around and took off his backpack. With shaking paws, he undid the fastener and opened the flap. As he reached in, he said, "I love you, and I want to be by your side…forever. We make the best team, you and I…and I want us to be together for whatever life throws at us."

From within the backpack, Rico pulled out a small bangle. It was bronze in colour, similar to Terry's brown fur. It was mostly simple in design, except for the clasp which was formed by two points that hooked into each other so that they looked like a pair of tails next to one another.

"Terry?" Rico said, holding the bangle out towards the Eevee, "Will you be my mate?"

A heavy silence fell over the group. Nobody moved a muscle. Terry was staring wide-eyed at both Rico and the bangle, his mouth hanging open wordlessly.

Rico's paws lowered a little, as if the bangle suddenly weighed a ton. "J-just know…Even if you say no, that's okay. I'll still be your teammate. I'll still be by your side for as long as-"

However, he couldn't get another word out. He was silenced by the heavy ball of fluff that suddenly tackled him into a tight hug, nearly knocking the wind out of him.

"Yes!"

Now it was Rico's turn to open his eyes wide in shock. "Wh-what?"

"Yes, Rico! Yes! Yes, yes, yes, a thousand times yes!"

It took a moment for Terry's words to sink in, but then Rico broke out into a huge, relived smile. "Y-yes? You said yes?"

"I love you, Rico!"

Rico hugged Terry back just as tightly. "I love you, Terry."

The sound of applause and cheering then filled the air as all the other Pokémon, Sparks included, began to offer their congratulations to the pair. Lupe was weeping and wiped a tear from her eye with her paw, but was smiling and clapping nonetheless.

"Did…Did you really say yes?" Rico said, and then laughed, "I wasn't just hearing things?"

"I would _love_ to be your mate, Rico!" Terry replied, "Nothing would make me happier!" The two then moved back from their hug slightly and shared a passionate, loving kiss with one another.

Terry then reluctantly pulled himself away from the hug and sat down. Rico had dropped the bangle after the sudden hug, and so picked it up and brushed the snow off of it. Terry held up his right-front paw, which was trembling a little. With a huge lovestruck smile, Rico carefully attached the bangle around Terry's wrist, securing it in place with a defining _click_. Terry examined it for a moment, and then tackled Rico into another hug.

Sparks felt someone tugging on his forelimb, and looked down to see Ziggy was trying to get his attention. He knelt down closer to the Buizel and said, "What's up?"

"Uh…What just happened…?" he said quietly.

"They got engaged to be mates," Sparks explained.

"What does that mean…?"

"Well, it's like…" Sparks stopped himself suddenly. He was about to compare it to the example of two parents, but realized that wouldn't be the best choice of words for the orphan to hear. "It's when two Pokémon love each other so very, very much. To the point where it feels like the love they feel is going to burst and they can't hold it in any more…" After a pause, he quietly added, "They decided they want to spend the rest of their lives together."

"Oh…" Ziggy said. He nodded a moment later, and Sparks figured he was thinking of older couples he must have seen when he was younger and on the streets. "What's that thing he put on him?"

"The bangle? It's a symbol of commitment. Rico gave that to Terry now when he proposed, and Terry will give one to Rico during the ceremony when they officially become mates."

"Oh, okay…" Ziggy said. He seemed to understand what he had been told. "What did he mean about being too young…?"

"Well, Pokémon usually don't become mates until they get older. It's usually no earlier than their late 20's or early 30's, but there's nothing _wrong_ with them doing it now. They both seem sure that it's the right choice."

There was a short pause, and then Ziggy asked, "Do…_you_ have a mate?"

Sparks glanced down at Ziggy. "No," he said simply, "No, I don't."

"Aaaaaaah, I'm so happy!" Terry's gleeful voice cut through the air and drew everyone's attention. He was still hugging and nuzzling Rico.

"Wow…" Rico said, "That was the scariest moment of my life…"

"What? Really?" Kona remarked in disbelief.

"Oh, heck yeah!" Rico said with a laugh, "You can throw me down a deadly dungeon, make me fight a giant Tyranitar, lock me in a cage underwater…That stuff doesn't rattle me one bit. Bring it on!" He looked into Terry's eyes and his expression softened. "The thought of Terry saying 'no', though? …_That_ was terrifying."

"Rico, don't be silly. You had nothing to worry about!" Terry said. He nuzzled his nose against Rico's and added, "And now that I've said 'yes', you can be truly fearless, huh? Heh heh!"

"Yeah, you're right!" Rico proclaimed, "I'll be the bravest adventurer ever! I'll be the next Dante!"

"Hey c'mon, let's not set impossible goals now…" Terry said, and everybody shared a laugh.

"Guys," Kona spoke up, "I don't mean to be a party pooper, but we only have so much oil in this lantern. If we stay out here too long it's gonna get a lot darker."

"Yeah, good point," Rico said, "We should probably head back anyway."

"I can't wait to show this to everyone!" Terry exclaimed, holding up the limb with the bangle on it.

"You two thought the guild gossip was bad when you were dating? Just wait…" Kona said.

After a moment, the two lovestruck Pokémon finally managed to separate themselves from their hug and everybody prepared to start heading back. Before they headed off, Lupe walked over and gave the both of them a hug of her own.

"Congratulations, Rico," she said, "Congratulations, Terry."

"Aw, thanks Lupe…" Rico said.

"I'm really happy for you both," Lupe said softly.

"Yeah, me too," Sparks said as he walked over to give them each a pat on the back, "You two really were made for each other."

"Y'think so?" Rico asked.

"I'd put more confidence in that than my ability to remember what I ate for breakfast the day before." Sparks snickered.

* * *

Sparks had never seen everybody so upbeat before.

There were smiles all around as the active team crowded by the whiteboard for the morning briefing. Everyone seemed to be in high spirits, not the least of which were the newly engaged Terry and Rico. They were both right up at the front, standing close enough for their fur to brush against one another, and looking up with determined smiles.

Last night had been quite the adventure, to put it lightly. After the group had returned from their walk, most of the active team were still relaxing in the common room. Terry had strutted in proudly, hopped up on the bench with his forelimbs up on the table, and had said, "Notice anything new about me?"

Shay, of course, had been the first to notice his new bangle, and the room practically exploded after that. Someone had suggested having a party, but everyone knew that they still had to work in the morning and the wintertime crunch was still going on.

Indeed, Carmen had a clipboard full of assignments ready to distribute to the waiting team members. She was delegating as many of them as she could, and was then going to look for guildmembers outside of the active team to take on the rest.

Sparks was only exempt from taking one on himself because today he would be teaching Ziggy both how to use the vacuum cleaner and the dishwasher. At the moment, the Buizel was practicing writing in his room.

"Alright, then! Let's do some good, today!"

"Yes, Guildmaster!"

Sparks then watched as most of the members of the active team excitedly headed off, either right out the door or back to their dorms to grab supplies. Rico ran off with a huge smile, Terry chasing after him and the both of them laughing like school cubs. Soon, only Sparks, Carmen and Danika were left. The latter was standing nearby, checking over a folder with information that she was holding.

"So," Sparks said as he walked up closer to Carmen, "You gonna be the minister at the ceremony?"

"By the grace of Arceus, _no_!" she exclaimed, "Good lord, don't even joke about that or I just know they'll ask me for some reason."

Sparks laughed. "They look up to you."

Carmen sighed softly. "This is the first time since becoming guildmaster I'm gonna have two mates under my command."

"Aw, they'll be fine. They were practically mates already anyway."

"Fair point, I suppose… Young love, hm?"

"Yeah…" Sparks chuckled.

"Liz wanted me to tell you that she's going to murder you in your sleep if you break the dishwasher," Carmen stated, "Again."

"Duly noted."

Carmen then politely excused herself to attend to other duties, likely involving finding other Pokémon to take the assignments. Sparks noticed Danika still hadn't left and so walked over to her. "What's up?"

"Hm?" Danika glanced up, and then adjusted her glasses, "Oh, hey Sparks. Sorry, I was distracted by this."

"What's going on?"

"Dr. Hilo is coming back here today," Danika said, "We're doing the last round of studies on our mysterious rock before it finally gets transferred over to his labs."

"Aw, really?" Sparks said, "That's gonna be the end of an era…"

"I know… And one without a proper ending…"

"That thing's been up there for months now. It's the most exciting, if most infuriating, thing I've been a part of here for a long time."

"He should be here any minute…" Danika said as she turned around to face the door to the main hall. As she did, the door opened and Tora briefly poked her head in. "In fact," Danika continued, "I think that's him right now. Go ahead and show him in, Tora! Thank you!"

The avian nodded and closed the door again. A few moments later it opened again and the white-robed Inteleon stepped through. "Miss Danika, good morning!" he greeted her with a smile, "So nice to see you once again. I trust you had an enjoyable holiday?"

"I certainly did, Dr. Hilo," Danika replied, quickly shaking paws with him, "And you as well?"

"Oh, I mostly spent it at work in the lab, but I did get a chance to have dinner with some friends on Christmas Eve…" The Inteleon then noticed Sparks. "Ah, and hello again to you as well, sir. You must forgive me, but I'm afraid I have forgotten your name."

"Sparks," he reminded him.

"Yes, of course. Sparks the Raichu! Such a charming moniker." Dr. Hilo stepped over and shook paws with him as well. "Was your holiday enjoyable as well?"

"It was. Thank you for asking," Sparks said, nodding professionally.

"Sparks, do you want to join us for a bit and help us take notes?" Danika asked him, "I asked Carmen to push through permissions for you, since you already know everything."

"Is that so? Ah, I suppose I could join you for a short while."

"Splendid, splendid!" Dr. Hilo proclaimed, clapping his hands and nodding, "Miss Danika has told me you were quite insightful during previous research on this anomaly…"

"Sure, I guess…For however far it got us…"

The Inteleon nodded with an eager grin. Sparks then noticed him subtly crane his neck to the side, as if looking over the Raichu's shoulder. "The little cub is not running around with you today, then?" he asked.

Sparks gave the Inteleon a slightly perturbed look. "No, not right now anyway…"

"I see, I see…" Dr. Hilo said with a simple nod. There was a pregnant pause before he asked, "I trust he is doing well?"

"He is," Sparks replied.

"Ah, good. Yes, quite good…" Dr. Hilo then trailed off and turned his attention back to Danika. He asked her something but Sparks wasn't paying attention. He skewed his lip as he regarded the older Inteleon. Sparks wasn't entirely pleased with the tone in the doctor's voice when Ziggy had been brought up, reminding him of the first time they had met. But, on the other paw, that was just how most Pokémon, especially in Radiant City, behaved. Compared to most of the Pokémon out on the street, Dr. Hilo's behaviour around Ziggy was leagues milder. It was clear the doctor wasn't entirely keen on Ziggy being a shiny, but Sparks figured it wasn't worth getting riled up about so long as Dr. Hilo didn't _do_ anything outwardly antagonistic towards the Buizel.

"Right!" Dr. Hilo proclaimed, "Shall we get started then? I am eager to see it again. I feel as if I have been separated from an old friend."

"Are you taking it back to your lab today?" Sparks asked.

"Unfortunately no," he replied, "We at Jiuji are still in the process of setting up a holding environment for the object, where it can be properly monitored and studied at all times. I am simply running some tests today that are more vital to get done."

"A bit more time before our child goes off to boarding school then?" Danika asked with a chuckle.

"Something like that… Has there been any changes since my last visit? Anything unusual to report? Different colours or such? Any more vibration?"

"Sadly no…" Danika replied as the two began to walk off. Sparks followed behind them at a leisurely pace.

"Well! I am sure with some smart heads working together it can all be figured out eventually, hm?"

* * *

Ziggy felt accomplished. He had learned to use the dishwasher! And it was kind of fun in a weird sort of way.

The day was winding down, and Ziggy was sitting on the couch in the common room. Everybody had just enjoyed dinner, but nobody seemed keen on leaving the room. Sparks was talking with Danika about something over at the table, but Ziggy didn't mind. The only other one on the couch was Rico, and he was nice to be around. He felt relaxed.

At least, quite a bit more relaxed than he had felt when trying to operate the noisy death machine, also known as the 'vacuum cleaner'.

Sometimes, he still couldn't quite believe what had happened to him. Where his life had taken him. He was sitting quietly and calmly, surrounded by other Pokémon, with his golden fur out on full display. In this environment, at least, he didn't even feel the desire to cover it up any more. He _knew_ he could trust these Pokémon.

He was _still_ nervously waiting for the day when he would wake up and find out it was _all_ a bad dream.

Ziggy shook his head and told himself to think about better things. He was safe here, with little to worry about. He had what could essentially be considered a 'job', and that was _astounding_ to him.

His wandering eyes eventually fell upon Rico, sitting across from him on the couch. Rico was laying down on a pillow that was propped up against the armrest, forelimbs behind his head and a very content smile on his muzzle. His eyes were closed but it didn't seem like he was sleeping.

Ziggy couldn't remember the last time he had seen a Pokémon smile that brightly. For so long, smiling Pokémon had been like a foreign concept to him. He still didn't quite fully understand what this whole 'mates' thing was about, but he figured it was probably something like what two parents do. From the shadows of his past, he'd seen plenty of pairs of Pokémon hug and kiss and smile and go everywhere together, usually with cubs in tow.

The only thing that seemed certain was that it had made Rico very, very happy.

Rico opened one eye and caught Ziggy's gaze. "Somethin' on your mind, dude?"

"Wh…!" Ziggy was caught off guard. Rico had spoken before he'd even had a chance to look away. How had Rico known he was looking at him? "Uh…I dunno, not really I guess?"

The Riolu shrugged and adjusted his position on the pillow.

"Um…" Ziggy murmured, "You look really happy."

"What gave it away?" Rico chuckled.

"Is it because you two are…so much in love?"

The faintest rosy tint appeared on Rico's cheeks. "That has somethin' to do with it, yeah."

"Mhm…"

A quiet moment passed, and then Rico opened his eyes again. He sat up straighter and gave Ziggy a more serious look. "You ever been in love?" he asked, "I know you're younger than me, but…Well, I fell in love with Terry when_ I_ was younger than _you_…"

Ziggy shook his head. "No… Kinda hard to be in love when everybody around you hates you…"

"Oh… Yeah, that's right. Dumb question. I'm sorry."

"I have _seen_ other Pokémon in love, though. Like, y'know…" Ziggy paused for a moment and blushed. "K-kissing Pokémon and hugging and…stuff…" He cleared his throat and added, "It looks nice…"

"It's fantastic…" Rico said, "It's even better when your love loves you back, though."

Ziggy regarded him. "Is that why you were scared? I remember you said you were scared…"

"I…" Rico trailed off for a moment and rubbed one of his paws on his shoulder. "I've been planning this for about a month…and I would have _nightmares_ that he would say no…That he would stop wanting anything to do with me, or that he'd say…he didn't love me. I got no qualms about saying that was a really, really scary moment for me..."

"Oh wow…"

"But," Rico added with a smile, "It all worked out! He said yes and now I can't stop smiling!"

"How…did you do it? If you were so scared?" Ziggy asked in a very quiet voice.

"What else was I gonna do? _Not_ do it? I wasn't gonna know the answer without asking. And if I didn't ask, then I wouldn't have heard a 'yes'…I just had to try. I was _pretty_ sure I knew what the answer was, but still…I wanted to do it, so…I did it."

A moment of silence passed as Ziggy considered his words.

"Y'know…" Rico said as he kicked back and returned to his lounging position, "Things don't always work out…but if you don't try anything, then _nothing_ will work out…"

Ziggy didn't reply. He just looked over at the Riolu thoughtfully. A moment later, Terry wandered over to the couch. Without even saying anything, he jumped up onto the couch and snuggled up next to Rico before the Riolu even noticed he had arrived. "Heeey, honey!" he swooned, nuzzling into Rico's neck.

"Oh no!" Rico said in a playful voice, "Snuggle attack! Literally my one and only weakness!"

For a few minutes, Ziggy sat nearby and somewhat awkwardly watched the two canoodling Pokémon. Honestly, their shared happiness was kind of infectious, but Ziggy got the feeling he wasn't somewhere he belonged anymore.

Thankfully, he noticed that Sparks was done talking with Danika now, so he hopped off the couch and made his way across the room towards where the Raichu was sitting.

"Hey, bud," Sparks greeted him.

"H-hi, Sparks…" Ziggy said as he sat down next to the larger Pokémon.

Sparks looked over at the couch where he had been sitting and said in a wry voice, "A grim reminder that both Riolu and Eevee can learn Attract."

"…What?" Ziggy muttered in confusion.

"Nothing. Bad joke. What's up?"

"Uhm…" Ziggy fidgeted with his paws for a moment. Sparks didn't pressure him to talk, which was something he never did and Ziggy was always thankful for that. Sparks was always content to let him speak at his own pace. "I… I was just thinking…about what Rico did…"

"What do you mean?"

"Last night…up on the hill, he said he was really scared of asking Terry," Ziggy said, "He's always been pretty strong and brave, so…that surprised me. But he did it anyway and…now he's really happy."

Sparks nodded, glancing over at the couch briefly. "He sure is…"

"And it made me think of you, too…" Ziggy continued, "How I thought you were strong and fearless all the time, and then your…thing happened in the alley." He briefly wilted under Sparks' sobering expression. "A-and I know that…even though you're strong, you get scared sometimes too…but you still do the things you want to do, even if they scare you…right?"

"That's right… I try my best not to let my fear control me. Or my…other demons…"

"Y-yeah…"

"Where're you going with this, Ziggy?"

"I…" Ziggy paused for a moment and took a slow breath. Then, he looked up at Sparks, trying his best to put forth what he thought a determined expression looked like. "I want to get better… I want… to make myself a better Pokémon."

Sparks looked down at him in surprise. "Ziggy…"

"I know that you want me to try things…and do things that make me scared…and we're always going so slow because everything's so scary…but I don't want to be the one holding everything back anymore…"

"…My goodness, Ziggy. That's a brave thing to say right there," Sparks said as a smile graced his lips.

"I…I just have to try…right?" Ziggy asked, "Just like Rico did…I just have to try…"

"And that's all I can ask of you, Zig. That you try." Sparks reached down and patted Ziggy on his shoulder. "I'm happy to hear you say that, bud. I know it must be scary just thinking about it, but…I think you're stronger than you realize. _Braver_ than you realize. If you're willing to try, then I'm willing to help."

"Heh… Thanks, Sparks. I just know I wouldn't be able to do it without you."


End file.
